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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bear — the animal
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bark — to shout
  7. firm — a company
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wind — moving air
  19. capital — a city
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. firm — steady
  22. capital — money
  23. firm — decided
  24. wind — to turn a key

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