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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: chip · wax · mug · branch · date · hand · shower · plane

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. chip — to eat
  4. mug — a face
  5. hand — in cards
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. plane — a tool
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. shower — rain
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mug — a cup
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. date — the fruit
  16. branch — a division
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. chip — for betting
  20. wax — to grow
  21. shower — to wash
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. hand — help

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