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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 112 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. kid — child
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. branch — a division
  17. ball — a great time
  18. shower — rain
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. ball — a dance
  21. kid — to tease
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. chip — to eat
  24. shower — to wash

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