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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: degree · wax · bat · saw · snap · fall · drill · pound

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. degree — temperature
  5. saw — the tool
  6. degree — from a university
  7. fall — the season
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. drill — the tool
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. snap — to click
  19. wax — to grow
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. drill — army training
  22. bat — the animal
  23. degree — an amount
  24. drill — a practice

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