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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. branch — a division
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. tear — from crying
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. face — to confront
  8. hand — help
  9. face — to point toward
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. hand — in cards
  13. face — part of the head
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. capital — a city
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. capital — money
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wax — to grow

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