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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cell — in biology
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. tube — the underground
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. tube — a container
  12. stem — to come from
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. pound — a weight
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a city
  19. date — the fruit
  20. wax — to grow
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cell — a phone
  24. pound — to hit hard

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