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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. drill — the tool
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — magic
  6. game — wild animals
  7. hand — help
  8. spell — a short time
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — to grow
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — clothes
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. suit — to fit
  16. degree — from a university
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. hand — in cards
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. drill — a practice
  23. game — a match
  24. degree — temperature

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