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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: stem · board · land · coach · kick · mouse · hand · wax

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. board — a committee
  8. kick — in football
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. land — a country
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. wax — to grow
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. stem — to come from

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