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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: mouse · wax · branch · capital · bowl · game · face · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. game — wild animals
  3. branch — a division
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. face — to point toward
  6. capital — a city
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. date — the fruit
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. face — to confront
  21. game — a match
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. capital — money

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