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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  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. cue — for pool
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mug — to rob
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — a signal
  10. court — of a king
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. court — for sport
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wax — to grow
  17. court — of law
  18. degree — from a university
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. mug — a cup
  23. mug — a face
  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