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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.

Make a worksheet

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: kick · wax · court · game · degree · band · firm · drill

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  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. band — a music group
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. drill — the tool
  5. degree — an amount
  6. drill — a practice
  7. firm — a company
  8. band — a ring
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. game — a match
  11. firm — decided
  12. game — wild animals
  13. court — of law
  14. degree — from a university
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. firm — steady
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. kick — in football
  20. drill — army training
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — for sport
  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