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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: rest · capital · racket · ball · perch · bark · wax · branch

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. rest — a break
  5. capital — a city
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. capital — money
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. rest — what's left
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. branch — a division
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wax — to grow
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. perch — the fish
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. branch — of a tree

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