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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: sharp · ball · mine · wax · last · charge · degree · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  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. present — a gift
  2. charge — electricity
  3. present — there
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wax — to grow
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. last — finally
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — for digging
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. sharp — clever
  13. last — final
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. ball — a dance
  17. charge — a price
  18. charge — in control
  19. last — to go on
  20. degree — an amount
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. present — the time now
  23. ball — a great time
  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