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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. club — for dancing
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. club — for golf
  5. wax — to grow
  6. bound — certain
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bound — obliged
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rash — a series
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bound — tied together
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. spring — of water
  24. club — a group

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