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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: stand · pit · wax · content · band · prune · degree · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. band — a ring
  3. stand — to bear
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. prune — to trim
  6. pit — in a race
  7. content — happy
  8. band — a music group
  9. content — the amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. plane — a tool
  12. degree — from a university
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. degree — an amount
  24. pit — a hole

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