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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: root · kid · ball · wax · land · hide · straw · tube

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tube — the underground
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. land — to come down
  11. wax — to grow
  12. root — of a word
  13. land — a country
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. tube — a container
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. land — ground
  19. root — of a plant
  20. kid — child
  21. ball — a great time
  22. kid — to tease
  23. root — the cause
  24. ball — a dance

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