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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: wax · tube · branch · bass · ball · chest · content · cap

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cap — of ice
  3. bass — the fish
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. chest — of your body
  6. content — happy
  7. tube — the underground
  8. content — the amount
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. branch — a division
  16. cap — a hat
  17. ball — a great time
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cap — a lid
  21. ball — a dance
  22. chest — a box
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. bass — low music

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