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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. shower — to wash
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. shower — rain
  6. degree — temperature
  7. wax — to grow
  8. degree — from a university
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. spring — of water
  16. bass — low music
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spring — the season
  21. craft — a skill
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. spring — a coil

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