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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. craft — a skill
  3. drill — army training
  4. bark — to shout
  5. drill — a practice
  6. craft — boats
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rash — a series
  12. ground — the earth
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. drill — the tool
  15. bore — to drill
  16. band — a ring
  17. ground — a position
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bore — to tire
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. band — a music group
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. rash — hasty

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