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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 116 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: rule · wax · mark · row · object · ground · ball · branch

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. wax — to grow
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. rule — a law
  5. object — to protest
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. row — a line
  11. ground — the earth
  12. object — a thing
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. branch — a division
  19. rule — government
  20. ground — a position
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. object — an aim
  24. mark — a grade

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