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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: spell · wound · bore · bass · degree · board · drill · wax

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  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. spell — magic
  2. bore — to drill
  3. wound — an injury
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. board — a committee
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. drill — the tool
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bass — the fish
  11. board — to get on
  12. bore — to tire
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wound — an injury
  15. drill — army training
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bass — low music
  18. degree — an amount
  19. drill — a practice
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. degree — from a university
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. wax — in the ear
  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