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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fall — to drop
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. cold — an illness
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. perch — the fish
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cold — not warm
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bark — to shout
  23. fall — the season
  24. wax — for sculpting

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