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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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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: branch · mate · fine · sharp · pitch · wax · season · march

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  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. mate — a friend
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. march — music
  5. mate — a partner
  6. fine — high quality
  7. march — the month
  8. sharp — clever
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. season — in sport
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mate — to breed
  15. branch — a division
  16. march — the month
  17. season — of the year
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. fine — all right
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pitch — completely
  23. season — to add flavour
  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