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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 120 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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. spell — letters
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. degree — temperature
  8. club — for dancing
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — magic
  11. capital — a city
  12. club — a group
  13. rock — a stone
  14. shower — rain
  15. rock — music
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. club — for golf
  19. capital — money
  20. wax — to grow
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. shower — to wash
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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