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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.

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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: pound · degree · rash · wax · object · ground · bowl · wound

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. object — an aim
  3. rash — hasty
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. degree — temperature
  7. wax — to grow
  8. object — to protest
  9. ground — a position
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. pound — a weight
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. degree — from a university
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ground — crushed
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rash — a series
  19. degree — an amount
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. object — a thing
  24. rash — on the skin

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