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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. field — a subject
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. field — for sport
  6. press — newspapers
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. degree — temperature
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. wax — to grow
  13. deal — to handle
  14. sharp — clever
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. press — to push
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. field — farmland
  19. degree — from a university
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. press — a publisher
  23. degree — an amount
  24. coach — a trainer

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