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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — a match
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. march — the month
  8. craft — a skill
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. fine — all right
  14. game — wild animals
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. march — music
  17. rule — a law
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rule — government
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. fine — high quality
  22. craft — boats
  23. degree — from a university
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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