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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. swing — music
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. wind — moving air
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chip — to eat
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. wax — to grow
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. bulb — for light
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. degree — from a university
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chip — for betting
  24. game — a match

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