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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. spell — magic
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. race — humankind
  5. hand — help
  6. wax — to grow
  7. stock — shares
  8. cell — a phone
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. spell — letters
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. branch — a division
  18. cell — in biology
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. hand — in cards
  22. stock — goods
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. spell — a short time

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