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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. degree — an amount
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. wax — to grow
  15. rash — hasty
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. rash — a series
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. degree — from a university
  24. season — in sport

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