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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 116 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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. cap — a lid
  9. plane — a tool
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. capital — a city
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rash — hasty
  16. cap — of ice
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rash — a series
  20. bass — low music
  21. capital — money
  22. bass — the fish
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. branch — a division

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