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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. vault — a safe
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in biology
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. wax — to grow
  18. stem — to come from
  19. bulb — for light
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bark — to shout
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cell — in a prison

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