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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. object — a thing
  4. wax — to grow
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. object — an aim
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. wind — moving air
  10. degree — an amount
  11. rule — government
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. game — a match
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. object — to protest
  17. rule — a law
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. game — wild animals
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wind — moving air
  23. chair — a leader
  24. game — a kind of play

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