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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: club · key · stem · degree · sharp · wax · chest · fine

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. degree — an amount
  5. fine — high quality
  6. sharp — clever
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. chest — a box
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fine — all right
  11. wax — to grow
  12. club — for golf
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. key — the most important part
  16. degree — from a university
  17. chest — of your body
  18. club — for dancing
  19. degree — temperature
  20. key — for a lock
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. club — a group
  24. key — in music

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