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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: branch · toast · wax · deal · cold · last · field · coach

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. field — for sport
  4. cold — not warm
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. deal — to handle
  9. field — a subject
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. field — farmland
  13. toast — bread
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. last — final
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. branch — a division
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. wax — to grow

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