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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. branch — a division
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. chest — of your body
  5. can — a tin
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. craft — a skill
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. field — for sport
  10. wax — to grow
  11. chest — a box
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. field — a subject
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. can — to be able to
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. can — a tin
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. chest — of your body
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. jam — in traffic

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