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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. degree — from a university
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. degree — an amount
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. hand — in cards
  11. saw — the tool
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bound — tied together
  18. snap — to click
  19. hand — help
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bound — certain
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. degree — temperature
  24. racket — a loud noise

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