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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: rush · wax · bank · cold · mug · pound · degree · bark

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — not warm
  3. degree — temperature
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mug — a face
  7. bark — to shout
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bank — of a river
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bank — for money
  17. rush — hurry
  18. bank — for money
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. mug — a cup
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. wax — in the ear

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