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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — help
  5. row — a line
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. degree — from a university
  8. row — to paddle
  9. degree — temperature
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. hand — in cards
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. cue — a hint
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. ball — a dance
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cue — a signal
  22. ball — a great time
  23. cue — for pool
  24. dip — to sink

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