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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 116 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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. staff — employees
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wax — to grow
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. bass — low music
  18. lean — thin
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. bass — the fish
  21. branch — a division
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. snap — to click

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