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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bear — the animal
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. degree — from a university
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. pop — soda
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. current — of water
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. snap — to click
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bear — the animal
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. degree — temperature
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. degree — an amount
  21. pop — music
  22. current — happening now
  23. pop — to visit
  24. current — electric

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