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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. last — to go on
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. last — final
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. cap — of ice
  9. last — finally
  10. cap — a lid
  11. branch — a division
  12. wax — to grow
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. cap — a hat
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. can — a tin
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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