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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.

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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 · chest · deal · game · sharp · land · staff · stand

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. game — a match
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. land — a country
  7. staff — employees
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — to grow
  10. land — to come down
  11. deal — to handle
  12. staff — a stick
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. chest — of your body
  18. sharp — clever
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. staff — employees
  23. chest — a box
  24. land — ground

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