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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitcher · degree · ruler · staff · tube · wax · kick · capital

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. tube — a container
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. staff — employees
  11. degree — temperature
  12. capital — a city
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. kick — in football
  16. staff — a stick
  17. staff — employees
  18. degree — from a university
  19. tube — the underground
  20. capital — money
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. kick — with a leg

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