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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: staff · scale · degree · swing · ground · clip · arm · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. scale — in music
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. degree — from a university
  7. swing — music
  8. degree — temperature
  9. ground — the earth
  10. hand — help
  11. swing — to play on
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. staff — employees
  14. ground — crushed
  15. scale — size or range
  16. staff — a stick
  17. clip — to cut
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. ground — a position
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — a video
  22. swing — in golf
  23. staff — employees
  24. degree — an amount

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