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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 116 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — government
  3. degree — an amount
  4. object — to protest
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. object — a thing
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. degree — from a university
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bass — the fish
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. object — an aim
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bass — low music
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wax — to grow
  23. degree — temperature
  24. wake — a trail

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