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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. pit — a hole
  3. wax — to grow
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. bark — to shout
  7. rock — a stone
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. clip — to cut
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. mark — a grade
  17. swing — to play on
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. mark — a trace
  20. clip — for paper
  21. swing — music
  22. clip — a video
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. rock — music

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