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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. ball — a dance
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. ball — a great time
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. board — a committee
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. degree — from a university
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. degree — temperature
  20. chip — to eat
  21. board — to get on
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. wax — to grow
  24. bat — the animal

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