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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 120 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. club — a group
  7. bark — to shout
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. content — happy
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. hand — in cards
  15. content — the amount
  16. hand — help
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. club — for golf
  19. vault — a safe
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. club — for dancing
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. wax — to grow
  24. cabinet — ministers

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