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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bulb — for light
  4. branch — a division
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mug — to rob
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. wax — to grow
  20. mug — a face
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. degree — temperature
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. branch — of a tree

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