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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. degree — temperature
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. board — to get on
  5. ground — a position
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. season — in sport
  8. ground — the earth
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. capital — a city
  13. degree — an amount
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. ground — crushed
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. fork — in a road
  20. capital — money
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. board — a committee
  24. wax — to grow

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