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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: mine · capital · bat · hide · pit · branch · rash · wax

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. branch — a division
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. rash — hasty
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bat — the animal
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a city
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. pit — a hole
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. pit — in a race
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. mine — for digging
  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