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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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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: last · toast · firm · nail · press · degree · wax · pitcher

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. last — finally
  3. press — a publisher
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. press — newspapers
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — an amount
  9. last — final
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. last — to go on
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. firm — a company
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. firm — steady
  21. toast — bread
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. firm — decided
  24. press — to push

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