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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: row · drill · pound · stem · degree · bowl · dip · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. dip — to sink
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. degree — an amount
  6. row — a line
  7. drill — army training
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. drill — the tool
  18. row — to paddle
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. drill — a practice
  22. wax — to grow
  23. degree — temperature
  24. dip — a sauce

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