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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: bass · spring · degree · mark · pit · wax · bulb · deal

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bulb — for light
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. bass — low music
  15. wax — to grow
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — a coil
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — temperature
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mark — a trace
  23. deal — to handle
  24. pit — a hole

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