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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. degree — from a university
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. fine — high quality
  6. degree — an amount
  7. date — the fruit
  8. degree — temperature
  9. fine — all right
  10. press — newspapers
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. press — to push
  13. wax — to grow
  14. clip — a video
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. content — happy
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — to cut
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. press — a publisher
  23. content — the amount
  24. nail — on a finger

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