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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.

Make a worksheet

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: degree · wax · bowl · patient · spring · lie · net · toast

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. degree — an amount
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wax — to grow
  6. spring — of water
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. toast — bread
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. degree — from a university
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. lie — to recline
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. spring — a coil
  24. net — after costs

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