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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 120 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 · wax · mug · row · mark · board · degree · pass

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bark — to shout
  8. mug — to rob
  9. wax — to grow
  10. board — to get on
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. mug — a face
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. degree — an amount
  18. board — a committee
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pass — a permit
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pass — to spend time

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