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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: tear · mug · firm · nail · swing · wax · degree · field

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. firm — a company
  3. degree — an amount
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. tear — to rip
  7. field — for sport
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. firm — decided
  10. swing — music
  11. wax — to grow
  12. field — farmland
  13. mug — to rob
  14. mug — a face
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. firm — steady
  18. degree — temperature
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. tear — from crying
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. field — a subject
  23. degree — from a university
  24. tear — from crying

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