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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. craft — boats
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. snap — to click
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — to visit
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. shower — rain
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. pass — a permit
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. wax — to grow
  21. shower — to wash
  22. pop — soda
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. degree — temperature

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