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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. spring — the season
  9. degree — an amount
  10. pop — to visit
  11. can — to be able to
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pop — music
  15. roll — a list
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. pop — soda
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — a coil
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. roll — on a roll

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