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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: hand · wax · clip · perch · vault · hide · patient · prune

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. perch — the fish
  4. hand — in cards
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. prune — to trim
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. clip — to cut
  13. vault — a safe
  14. clip — a video
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wax — to grow
  24. clip — for paper

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