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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 116 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: present · degree · band · wax · bound · bear · root · fork

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bound — certain
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bear — the animal
  11. band — a ring
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. band — a music group
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bound — tied together
  20. degree — from a university
  21. present — there
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — a gift
  24. fork — a garden tool

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