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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
468
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: hand · root · bat · clip · key · cue · arm · wax

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. cue — a signal
  3. hand — in cards
  4. cue — a hint
  5. key — in music
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cue — for pool
  9. root — of a word
  10. key — the most important part
  11. hand — help
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. clip — a video
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. clip — for paper
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. clip — to cut
  24. wax — to grow

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