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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 · coach · clip · net · kid · deal · bear · drill

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. deal — to handle
  5. drill — the tool
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. net — in sport
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bear — the animal
  13. kid — to tease
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — a video
  16. net — for catching
  17. kid — child
  18. drill — a practice
  19. net — after costs
  20. wax — to grow
  21. drill — army training
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. bear — the animal
  24. coach — a trainer

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