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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. dip — to sink
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. degree — from a university
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. degree — an amount
  17. face — to confront
  18. wax — to grow
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. mine — for digging
  23. degree — temperature
  24. face — part of the head

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