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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. degree — an amount
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bound — tied together
  5. degree — from a university
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. wax — to grow
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. board — a committee
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bound — certain
  15. wind — moving air
  16. vault — a safe
  17. toast — bread
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. board — to get on
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bound — obliged
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com