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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: march · arm · wave · lie · branch · cell · wax · net

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. lie — to recline
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. cell — a phone
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. march — the month
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. net — after costs
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. march — music
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. net — in sport
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. branch — a division
  22. march — the month
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cell — in biology

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