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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: degree · tube · staff · prune · hand · deal · sharp · wax

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. staff — a stick
  4. tube — a container
  5. wax — to grow
  6. tube — the underground
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hand — in cards
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. staff — employees
  18. degree — from a university
  19. sharp — clever
  20. prune — to trim
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. staff — employees
  23. prune — to trim
  24. hand — help

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