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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. cap — of ice
  10. branch — a division
  11. bat — the animal
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. game — a match
  15. stand — to bear
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. cap — a hat
  18. game — wild animals

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