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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 120 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  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. wax — in the ear
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. court — of a king
  4. degree — from a university
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. club — for golf
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. degree — temperature
  9. club — a group
  10. court — of law
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. club — for dancing
  14. court — for sport
  15. bear — the animal
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to bend
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bear — the animal
  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