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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 124 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: wax · face · shower · cabinet · foot · hand · ball · branch

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. hand — in cards
  5. branch — a division
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. shower — to wash
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a great time
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. foot — a measure
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — part of the head
  23. hand — help
  24. foot — part of the body

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