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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: stock · wax · ground · perch · firm · branch · leaves · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. wax — to grow
  3. ground — the earth
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. key — for a lock
  6. firm — a company
  7. ground — crushed
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. key — in music
  10. firm — decided
  11. branch — a division
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. stock — shares
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — a position
  18. firm — steady
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. perch — the fish

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