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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. face — to point toward
  3. drill — a practice
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — an amount
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. last — finally
  9. band — a ring
  10. drill — army training
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. face — part of the head
  13. degree — from a university
  14. face — to confront
  15. wax — to grow
  16. band — a music group
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — final

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