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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. degree — from a university
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. march — the month
  8. degree — temperature
  9. rest — a break
  10. march — music
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — an amount
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — completely
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. rest — what's left
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. rest — what's left

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