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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: stem · sharp · cue · chair · bass · clip · band · wax

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. cue — a signal
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. wax — to grow
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. band — a music group
  9. bass — the fish
  10. chair — a leader
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. cue — for pool
  14. band — a ring
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bass — low music
  20. stem — to come from
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. clip — a video
  24. cue — a hint

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