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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. current — of water
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. degree — an amount
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. degree — from a university
  9. stem — to come from
  10. current — electric
  11. mug — a face
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. ball — a dance
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. mug — to rob
  17. degree — temperature
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. ball — a great time
  20. mug — a cup
  21. pass — a permit
  22. pitch — completely
  23. current — happening now
  24. pass — to spend time

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