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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 116 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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bark — to shout
  5. land — ground
  6. firm — steady
  7. ground — crushed
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — a phone
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. land — to come down
  13. firm — a company
  14. land — a country
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. staff — a stick
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. stand — to bear
  21. staff — employees
  22. firm — decided
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — the earth

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