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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: kid · wax · last · saw · squash · mark · branch · club

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mark — a grade
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. club — for dancing
  8. kid — child
  9. club — a group
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. kid — to tease
  13. last — to go on
  14. squash — the sport
  15. last — final
  16. saw — the tool
  17. last — finally
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — a division
  20. squash — to crush
  21. club — for golf
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wax — to grow
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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