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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. key — in music
  7. branch — a division
  8. mine — for digging
  9. key — the most important part
  10. lean — thin
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fork — in a road
  16. land — ground
  17. wax — to grow
  18. lean — to bend
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. key — for a lock
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. land — a country

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