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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  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. can — to be able to
  2. race — humankind
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. game — a match
  5. branch — a division
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. mine — for digging
  10. season — of the year
  11. wax — to grow
  12. season — in sport
  13. race — the arms race
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. can — a tin
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. can — a tin
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pitch — completely
  23. race — a contest
  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