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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. game — a match
  3. tube — the underground
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. rock — a stone
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. degree — temperature
  9. rock — music
  10. game — wild animals
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. degree — an amount
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. degree — from a university
  20. sharp — clever
  21. tube — a container
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. wax — in the ear

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