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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: bark · pop · cap · wax · pound · wake · chip · degree

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. pop — soda
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. chip — to eat
  9. wax — to grow
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — temperature
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pop — music
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. degree — an amount
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bark — to shout
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pop — to visit
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. pound — a weight

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