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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. drill — a practice
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. degree — from a university
  6. current — of water
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. pound — a weight
  9. mate — to breed
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. mate — a partner
  12. drill — the tool
  13. current — happening now
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. mate — a friend
  16. wax — to grow
  17. rash — hasty
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rash — a series
  24. current — electric

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