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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: wound · wax · vault · hand · scale · land · kick · ball

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wax — to grow
  4. vault — a safe
  5. ball — a dance
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. land — to come down
  8. hand — in cards
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. wound — an injury
  13. kick — in football
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. scale — in music
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. land — ground
  19. land — a country
  20. scale — size or range
  21. hand — help
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. wound — an injury
  24. ball — a great time

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