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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: clip · wax · ball · last · branch · fine · temple · lash

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. clip — a video
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. branch — a division
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. clip — for paper
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. clip — to cut
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. ball — a great time
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. last — finally
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. ball — a dance
  16. last — final
  17. fine — high quality
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. last — to go on
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. fine — all right
  22. wax — to grow
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. fine — a penalty

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