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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 124 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: object · mouse · wax · stem · chest · degree · squash · ground

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. ground — crushed
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the sport
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. object — an aim
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chest — a box
  13. stem — to come from
  14. chest — of your body
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. ground — the earth
  17. chest — of your body
  18. degree — an amount
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — a thing
  21. ground — a position
  22. wax — to grow
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. degree — temperature

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