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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 120 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 ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. object — to protest
  5. net — in sport
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. degree — an amount
  9. prune — to trim
  10. net — for catching
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. prune — to trim
  13. net — after costs
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. root — of a word
  16. branch — a division
  17. object — a thing
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. object — an aim
  21. root — the cause
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. degree — temperature

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