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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wax · chest · pop · racket · degree · branch · perch · track

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. perch — the fish
  3. chest — of your body
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — a division
  6. degree — an amount
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. degree — temperature
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pop — to visit
  11. track — a song
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. chest — a box
  14. degree — from a university
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. track — a path
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. track — to keep track
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — to grow

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