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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. object — to protest
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. stock — goods
  6. capital — a city
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. object — an aim
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. foot — a measure
  12. branch — a division
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. capital — money
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. snap — to click
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. object — a thing
  23. stock — shares
  24. foot — part of the body

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