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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.

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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: sharp · fine · wax · degree · mark · land · wound · season

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. wound — an injury
  4. sharp — clever
  5. wound — an injury
  6. fine — high quality
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. land — a country
  9. degree — from a university
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — a trace
  14. season — of the year
  15. wax — to grow
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — temperature
  19. land — to come down
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. season — in sport
  23. land — ground
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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