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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. track — a song
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. object — a thing
  8. degree — an amount
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. wax — to grow
  11. object — an aim
  12. rush — hurry
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. net — after costs
  16. track — to keep track
  17. fine — high quality
  18. net — for catching
  19. object — to protest
  20. net — in sport
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. degree — temperature
  23. track — a path
  24. fine — all right

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