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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · cabinet · wake · season · fork · cap · march · wax

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. march — music
  7. wake — a trail
  8. degree — from a university
  9. season — of the year
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. season — in sport
  14. cap — a lid
  15. wax — to grow
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cap — a hat
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. march — the month
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fork — in a road
  24. march — the month

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