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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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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. squash — to crush
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. land — ground
  7. wound — an injury
  8. race — the arms race
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — a country
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. club — a group
  13. hand — in cards
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. squash — the sport
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. club — for golf
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — humankind
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. club — for dancing
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. squash — the vegetable

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