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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. vault — a safe
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. march — music
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. shower — rain
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. rule — a law
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. march — the month
  14. rule — government
  15. charge — a price
  16. branch — a division
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wax — to grow
  19. charge — in control
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. march — the month
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. perch — the fish

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