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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. degree — temperature
  3. file — a tool
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. field — a subject
  6. wax — to grow
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a line of people
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. degree — from a university
  12. deal — to handle
  13. fall — the season
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. field — for sport
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. field — farmland
  23. degree — an amount
  24. fall — to drop

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