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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  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. degree — from a university
  2. row — a line
  3. row — to paddle
  4. swing — to play on
  5. prune — to trim
  6. swing — in golf
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. swing — music
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. prune — to trim
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. kick — in football
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. row — a quarrel
  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