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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 116 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. chair — a leader
  7. net — in sport
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. net — after costs
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. club — for dancing
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. net — for catching
  22. degree — temperature
  23. club — a group
  24. bark — to shout

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