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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wax — to grow
  5. key — in music
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. key — for a lock
  8. staff — employees
  9. content — the amount
  10. staff — a stick
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. cold — an illness
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cold — not warm
  19. staff — employees
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. key — the most important part
  22. content — happy
  23. bark — to shout
  24. nail — for a hammer

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