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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 120 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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  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. drill — army training
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. drill — the tool
  5. bank — for money
  6. capital — money
  7. drill — a practice
  8. bass — the fish
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kid — child
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. pound — a weight
  14. degree — from a university
  15. capital — a city
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. degree — an amount
  20. bank — for money
  21. kid — to tease
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bass — low music
  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