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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: snap · mouse · game · pop · wax · branch · degree · bark

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. pop — soda
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pop — to visit
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bark — to shout
  12. pop — music
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. game — a match
  17. wax — to grow
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. snap — to click
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. game — a kind of play

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