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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.

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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: bank · staff · degree · patient · wax · mug · clip · prune

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bank — for money
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wax — to grow
  5. mug — a face
  6. mug — a cup
  7. degree — an amount
  8. staff — employees
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. staff — a stick
  11. degree — temperature
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bank — of a river
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. clip — a video
  18. bank — for money
  19. mug — to rob
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. staff — employees
  22. clip — to cut
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. clip — for paper

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