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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: bound · last · wax · rush · net · can · degree · mine

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. net — after costs
  3. can — to be able to
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. net — for catching
  9. last — finally
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bound — obliged
  12. last — final
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bound — certain
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. net — in sport
  18. mine — for digging
  19. wax — to grow
  20. last — to go on
  21. rush — hurry
  22. degree — from a university
  23. bound — tied together
  24. degree — an amount

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