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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 116 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. shower — rain
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. deal — to handle
  10. scale — size or range
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. wax — to grow
  19. shower — to wash
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. degree — from a university
  22. scale — in music
  23. tube — a container
  24. degree — an amount

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