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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: cell · wave · hand · temple · saw · wax · mouse · branch

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. cell — a phone
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. branch — a division
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. hand — in cards
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. hand — help
  18. wax — to grow
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. mouse — for a computer

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