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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: stem · wax · ball · trunk · face · branch · cell · current

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. current — electric
  4. stem — to come from
  5. current — happening now
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. face — part of the head
  9. current — of water
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. ball — a dance
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. face — to confront
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. ball — a great time
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wax — to grow
  22. face — to point toward
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cell — in biology

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