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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. degree — an amount
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a hole
  8. drill — army training
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. mug — a face
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — to rob
  13. drill — the tool
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. dip — to sink
  16. degree — from a university
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. wax — to grow
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. safe — out of danger

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