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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: wake · cell · wax · branch · cap · rule · snap · ball

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. rule — a law
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cap — of ice
  14. rule — government
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wax — to grow
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. ball — a dance
  20. branch — a division
  21. cap — a hat
  22. snap — to click
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cell — a phone

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