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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pit — a hole
  12. root — of a plant
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. cap — of ice
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bulb — for light
  17. root — the cause
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. pit — in a race
  20. root — of a word
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cap — a hat
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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