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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 116 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: board · rush · bulb · branch · field · cap · wax · cell

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bulb — for light
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. field — farmland
  12. rush — hurry
  13. board — a committee
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. cap — a lid
  17. field — for sport
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. cell — in biology
  20. field — a subject
  21. bulb — for light
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. board — to get on
  24. branch — a division

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