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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. scale — in music
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. suit — in cards
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. clip — a video
  8. suit — to fit
  9. wax — to grow
  10. clip — to cut
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. board — to get on
  13. scale — size or range
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. board — a committee
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — an amount
  21. suit — clothes
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pitch — completely

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