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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. wax — to grow
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cue — a signal
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — army training
  10. degree — temperature
  11. cue — a hint
  12. lean — to bend
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. drill — a practice
  15. ball — a great time
  16. spell — letters
  17. lean — thin
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. degree — an amount
  20. pitch — completely
  21. drill — the tool
  22. ball — a dance
  23. spell — magic
  24. degree — from a university

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