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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. scale — in music
  4. club — for dancing
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. degree — an amount
  7. court — of law
  8. object — an aim
  9. club — a group
  10. object — a thing
  11. content — the amount
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. degree — temperature
  14. content — happy
  15. object — to protest
  16. court — for sport
  17. club — for golf
  18. wax — to grow
  19. scale — size or range
  20. court — of a king
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. deal — to handle

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