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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. hand — help
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. court — of law
  6. pitch — completely
  7. wax — to grow
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bore — to tire
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bore — to drill
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. court — for sport
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. court — of a king
  24. leaves — lets stay

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