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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. file — a document
  3. wax — to grow
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. branch — a division
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. capital — money
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. file — a tool
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. toast — bread
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. capital — a city
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. file — a line of people

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