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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. wax — to grow
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bass — low music
  8. toast — bread
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. bass — the fish
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. dip — to sink
  14. stem — to come from
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. cold — not warm
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a bank

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