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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. face — to confront
  4. spring — of water
  5. snap — to click
  6. degree — an amount
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — temperature
  10. race — a contest
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — part of the head
  16. race — the arms race
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. race — humankind
  19. spring — the season
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wax — to grow
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. spring — a coil
  24. stand — to bear

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