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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: wax · ball · stock · degree · club · trunk · hand · hide

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. degree — an amount
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. club — a group
  5. ball — a great time
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. stock — shares
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. stock — goods
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wax — to grow
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. club — for dancing
  17. degree — temperature
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. ball — a dance
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. degree — from a university
  24. trunk — of a car

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