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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. can — to be able to
  5. staff — employees
  6. wax — to grow
  7. present — there
  8. season — in sport
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. can — a tin
  13. stem — to come from
  14. season — of the year
  15. staff — a stick
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. staff — employees
  19. degree — an amount
  20. present — a gift
  21. degree — temperature
  22. present — the time now
  23. degree — from a university
  24. rash — hasty

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