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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. charge — a price
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. degree — an amount
  6. wax — to grow
  7. swing — in golf
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. prune — to trim
  11. charge — in control
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — humankind
  15. degree — from a university
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. race — a contest
  19. plane — a tool
  20. swing — to play on
  21. stock — shares
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. swing — music
  24. charge — electricity

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