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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. can — to be able to
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. club — for golf
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. club — for dancing
  12. wax — to grow
  13. clip — for paper
  14. can — a tin
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. clip — to cut
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. club — a group
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. can — a tin
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. clip — a video

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