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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 120 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: net · last · pitcher · scale · hide · kick · hand · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. last — final
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. net — for catching
  6. hand — help
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. net — in sport
  9. last — to go on
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. last — finally
  14. kick — in football
  15. scale — in music
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wax — to grow
  19. net — after costs
  20. scale — size or range
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. hide — animal skin

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