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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. court — of a king
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. fall — to drop
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bat — the animal
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. wax — to grow
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fall — the season
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. fall — to drop

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