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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. degree — from a university
  4. spring — of water
  5. rule — government
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spring — a coil
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. rule — a law
  11. net — after costs
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. net — for catching
  14. wax — to grow
  15. net — in sport
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. degree — an amount
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. spring — the season
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. wax — for sculpting

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