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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. object — a thing
  4. perch — the fish
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cell — in biology
  9. object — to protest
  10. branch — a division
  11. cell — a phone
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. object — an aim
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. perch — for a bird

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