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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pop · hand · stand · field · current · ground · degree · wax

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. field — farmland
  3. current — happening now
  4. field — for sport
  5. current — of water
  6. hand — in cards
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stand — to bear
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wax — to grow
  13. field — a subject
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. degree — from a university
  16. current — electric
  17. pop — music
  18. ground — the earth
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. ground — crushed
  23. ground — a position
  24. stand — on your feet

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