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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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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: band · degree · wax · rule · race · arm · cabinet · rock

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. degree — an amount
  4. wax — to grow
  5. race — humankind
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. band — a ring
  8. rule — a law
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. race — the arms race
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. degree — temperature
  14. band — a music group
  15. rock — a stone
  16. race — a contest
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. degree — from a university
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. rock — music

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