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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. wind — moving air
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wind — moving air
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. wax — to grow
  10. court — of law
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. court — for sport
  13. row — a line
  14. track — a path
  15. branch — a division
  16. shower — rain
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. track — to keep track
  19. row — to paddle
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. court — of a king

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