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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. press — a publisher
  5. degree — from a university
  6. net — in sport
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. press — newspapers
  9. net — for catching
  10. shower — rain
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. wax — to grow
  14. net — after costs
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. pop — to visit
  18. pit — a hole
  19. press — to push
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. shower — to wash
  22. pit — in a race
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — an amount

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