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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  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. land — to come down
  2. content — happy
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. root — of a word
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a dance
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. degree — an amount
  13. wax — to grow
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — the cause
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. land — ground
  19. ball — a great time
  20. rock — music
  21. land — a country
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. degree — from a university
  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