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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: net · bat · wax · branch · ground · plane · last · drill

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. branch — a division
  3. drill — a practice
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. wax — to grow
  6. ground — a position
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. net — after costs
  9. plane — a tool
  10. last — to go on
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bat — the animal
  15. ground — the earth
  16. drill — army training
  17. last — finally
  18. drill — the tool
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. ground — crushed
  22. last — final
  23. net — in sport
  24. plane — an aircraft

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