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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · cell · kick · pit · game · wax

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. cell — in biology
  3. pit — in a race
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wax — to grow
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. pit — a hole
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cell — a phone
  13. kick — in football
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. game — wild animals

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