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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. game — wild animals
  4. charge — a price
  5. bound — obliged
  6. capital — a city
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. capital — money
  9. land — to come down
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. land — ground
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. charge — electricity
  15. branch — a division
  16. bound — tied together
  17. wax — to grow
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. bound — certain
  23. land — a country
  24. charge — in control

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