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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bark — to shout
  5. land — ground
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. land — a country
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. ground — crushed
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. land — to come down
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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