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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 124 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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. degree — temperature
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. deal — to handle
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bound — certain
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. march — music
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bound — obliged
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bound — tied together
  22. fork — in a road
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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