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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: ball · deal · foot · degree · hide · clip · staff · wax

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. degree — from a university
  3. staff — employees
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. ball — a great time
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. staff — employees
  11. clip — a video
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. clip — for paper
  14. ball — a dance
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. wax — to grow
  17. degree — an amount
  18. foot — a measure
  19. clip — to cut
  20. staff — a stick
  21. deal — to handle
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. degree — temperature
  24. deal — an agreement

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