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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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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: wind · wax · toast · vault · pound · degree

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. degree — from a university
  4. toast — bread
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. degree — an amount
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. wind — moving air
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wax — to grow
  14. degree — temperature
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pound — a weight
  17. vault — a safe
  18. pound — to hit hard

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