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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: stand · arm · staff · clip · court · wax · ball · shower

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. ball — a great time
  3. stand — to bear
  4. clip — to cut
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. clip — a video
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. court — of law
  9. staff — a stick
  10. court — for sport
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. ball — a dance
  16. shower — rain
  17. court — of a king
  18. staff — employees
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. shower — to wash
  22. staff — employees
  23. ball — a round shape
  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