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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.

Make a worksheet

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
YesNo
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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: land · perch · face · racket · wax · degree · staff · scale

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. degree — an amount
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — part of the head
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. staff — a stick
  11. land — ground
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. staff — employees
  15. scale — in music
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. degree — from a university
  18. scale — size or range
  19. degree — temperature
  20. land — a country
  21. face — to point toward
  22. wax — to grow
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. staff — employees

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