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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. hand — help
  3. wake — a trail
  4. club — for dancing
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. club — for golf
  8. hand — in cards
  9. cue — a signal
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cue — a hint
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. cue — for pool
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. degree — from a university
  22. club — a group
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. wax — in the ear

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