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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. degree — temperature
  3. ground — a position
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. degree — from a university
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. field — for sport
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. field — farmland
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. field — a subject
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. snap — to click
  22. ground — crushed
  23. degree — an amount
  24. ground — the earth

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