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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: wax · plane · degree · lean · foot · branch · face · mine

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — to grow
  3. branch — a division
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. foot — a measure
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. degree — temperature
  9. lean — thin
  10. plane — a tool
  11. lean — to bend
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — to point toward
  16. mine — for digging
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. degree — an amount
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. plane — in geometry

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