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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: bark · bass · march · wax · present · prune · land · bank

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bark — to shout
  5. prune — to trim
  6. march — the month
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. march — the month
  10. present — the time now
  11. march — music
  12. present — there
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bank — for money
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — low music
  18. prune — to trim
  19. land — a country
  20. present — a gift
  21. bank — of a river
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. prune — the fruit

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