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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 120 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: present · spring · rash · firm · chair · wax · branch · pass

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. spring — the season
  4. rash — hasty
  5. spring — of water
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. branch — a division
  10. wax — to grow
  11. firm — decided
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. present — a gift
  14. rash — a series
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a leader
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. present — the time now
  20. pass — a permit
  21. spring — a coil
  22. firm — steady
  23. present — there
  24. firm — a company

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