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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: branch · last · spell · tube · wax · bark · key · kid

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. wax — to grow
  4. tube — a container
  5. key — for a lock
  6. kid — to tease
  7. last — to go on
  8. branch — a division
  9. bark — to shout
  10. spell — magic
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. key — the most important part
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. key — in music
  17. kid — child
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. spell — letters
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. tube — the underground
  22. spell — a short time
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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