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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: wax · degree · kick · bay · capital · wake · bank · hand

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wax — to grow
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. capital — money
  5. bank — for money
  6. capital — a city
  7. degree — temperature
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bank — for money
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. kick — in football
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bank — of a river
  20. degree — from a university
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — help
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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