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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. wound — an injury
  3. chip — for betting
  4. wax — to grow
  5. rock — music
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. club — for golf
  9. drill — army training
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. branch — a division
  15. rock — a stone
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. drill — the tool
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. club — for dancing
  23. drill — a practice
  24. chip — to eat

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