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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. rule — a law
  8. root — of a word
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. present — the time now
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — the cause
  14. season — in sport
  15. rule — government
  16. present — a gift
  17. degree — from a university
  18. present — there
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. season — of the year
  21. hand — in cards
  22. degree — temperature
  23. hand — help
  24. rule — to rule out

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