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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bark — to shout
  5. content — the amount
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. wax — to grow
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. fork — in a road
  14. kid — child
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. staff — employees
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. content — happy
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. date — the fruit

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