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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chest · stick · bark · content · branch · net · game · wax

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. net — in sport
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. chest — of your body
  9. game — a match
  10. game — wild animals
  11. content — happy
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. net — after costs
  14. content — the amount
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wax — to grow
  18. branch — a division
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chest — a box
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. net — for catching

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