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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  2. bulb — for light
  3. stock — shares
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. branch — a division
  7. cold — not warm
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cold — an illness
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stock — goods
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — a safe
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bulb — for light
  24. branch — of a bank

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