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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: court · wax · branch · straw · band · tear · fan · mark

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. mark — a trace
  7. tear — to rip
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. band — a music group
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of law
  14. branch — a division
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mark — a grade
  17. band — a ring
  18. wax — to grow
  19. court — of a king
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. tear — from crying
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. straw — a straw man

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