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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: pop · branch · court · saw · stock · wax · wound · game

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. game — a match
  4. court — for sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. branch — a division
  10. pop — to visit
  11. pop — soda
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. court — of law
  14. court — of a king
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. saw — the tool
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wound — an injury
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pop — music
  21. stock — goods
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. stock — shares
  24. branch — of a bank

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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