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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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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: field · pitch · pound · bound · race · ruler · degree · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bound — obliged
  3. race — a contest
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. degree — an amount
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. bound — tied together
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bound — certain
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — farmland
  12. degree — temperature
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — a weight
  15. race — humankind
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. field — for sport
  21. pitch — completely
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pitch — a sports field

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