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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: spell · pound · degree · mark · wax · scale · row · rock

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. degree — temperature
  3. spell — magic
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. mark — a trace
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — a short time
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. degree — an amount
  11. scale — in music
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. rock — a stone
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wax — to grow
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. pound — a weight
  20. row — a line
  21. scale — size or range
  22. rock — music
  23. mark — a grade
  24. row — to paddle

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