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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bank — for money
  4. key — the most important part
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rule — a law
  9. cell — in biology
  10. key — in music
  11. degree — an amount
  12. key — for a lock
  13. rest — a break
  14. wax — to grow
  15. mark — a trace
  16. bank — of a river
  17. rule — government
  18. degree — temperature
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. bank — for money
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. mark — a grade
  24. wax — in the ear

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