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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 120 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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. staff — employees
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. charge — in control
  8. staff — a stick
  9. charge — a price
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. capital — money
  13. sharp — clever
  14. staff — employees
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. degree — an amount
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. capital — a city
  20. face — to confront
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wax — to grow
  23. charge — electricity
  24. face — part of the head

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