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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: board · tube · present · branch · row · wake · wax · content

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. board — to get on
  4. tube — a container
  5. content — happy
  6. row — a line
  7. tube — the underground
  8. row — to paddle
  9. present — the time now
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. board — a committee
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wax — to grow
  16. present — a gift
  17. branch — a division
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. wake — a trail
  23. present — there
  24. content — the amount

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