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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. content — happy
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bark — to shout
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rock — a stone
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. content — the amount
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. rock — music
  20. spell — magic
  21. spell — letters
  22. wake — a trail
  23. rash — a series
  24. trunk — 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