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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. drill — a practice
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. last — final
  7. face — to confront
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. ball — a dance
  11. degree — from a university
  12. last — finally
  13. drill — the tool
  14. face — part of the head
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. last — to go on
  18. degree — an amount
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. face — to point toward
  22. ball — a great time
  23. drill — army training
  24. wax — in the ear

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