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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: content · mug · wax · kid · bore · racket · band · degree

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. content — the amount
  3. bore — to drill
  4. mug — a cup
  5. bore — to tire
  6. kid — to tease
  7. content — happy
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. band — a music group
  10. mug — to rob
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. degree — from a university
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wax — to grow
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. mug — a face
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. band — a ring
  23. kid — child
  24. band — a rubber band

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