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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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. staff — a stick
  4. suit — clothes
  5. degree — from a university
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bound — tied together
  11. degree — an amount
  12. staff — employees
  13. suit — in cards
  14. field — farmland
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. suit — to fit
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bound — certain
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. field — a subject
  22. bark — to shout
  23. field — for sport
  24. bound — obliged

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