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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: bowl · stock · shower · vault · wax · ruler · degree · key

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. stock — goods
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. degree — from a university
  11. key — the most important part
  12. wax — to grow
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. vault — a safe
  15. stock — shares
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. degree — temperature
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. degree — an amount
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — rain

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