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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — an amount
  3. lean — thin
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. degree — from a university
  6. ground — the earth
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. capital — a city
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bass — low music
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. drill — a practice
  16. bass — the fish
  17. ground — a position
  18. drill — army training
  19. ground — crushed
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. drill — the tool
  22. capital — money
  23. lean — to bend
  24. wax — to grow

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