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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: bank · snap · drill · fall · bass · wax · degree · root

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. degree — from a university
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. root — the cause
  5. snap — to click
  6. root — of a plant
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. drill — the tool
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bank — for money
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bank — of a river
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — low music
  17. wax — to grow
  18. root — of a word
  19. degree — temperature
  20. drill — army training
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bank — for money
  23. fall — the season
  24. bass — the instrument

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