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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rash — a series
  3. rock — a stone
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bark — to shout
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. ground — crushed
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. rash — hasty
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wax — to grow
  19. ground — a position
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. ground — the earth
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bark — of a tree

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