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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: field · tube · cell · wax · hand · degree · rest · ruler

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. rest — what's left
  4. hand — in cards
  5. rest — what's left
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. degree — an amount
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rest — a break
  13. field — a subject
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. cell — a phone
  19. hand — help
  20. tube — a container
  21. degree — from a university
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. tube — the underground
  24. cell — in a prison

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