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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: march · bulb · branch · nail · last · bass · wax · object

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. last — final
  3. object — an aim
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. branch — a division
  6. march — music
  7. object — to protest
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bulb — for light
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. march — the month
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bass — the fish
  14. object — a thing
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. wax — to grow
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. last — finally
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — to go on
  24. march — the month

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