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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. fall — to drop
  7. branch — a division
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. hand — help
  10. fall — the season
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. sharp — clever
  15. wake — a trail
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fall — to drop
  18. stock — goods
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. stock — shares
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. nail — on a finger

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