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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. degree — temperature
  7. band — a music group
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — a phone
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. degree — an amount
  22. deal — to handle
  23. band — a ring
  24. coach — a trainer

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