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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. degree — temperature
  6. hand — help
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. hand — in cards
  18. game — wild animals
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. game — a match
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. wave — of the sea

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