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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. net — after costs
  9. craft — boats
  10. vault — a safe
  11. march — music
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. net — for catching
  15. wax — to grow
  16. court — for sport
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. shower — to wash
  20. march — the month
  21. shower — rain
  22. net — in sport
  23. craft — a skill
  24. bark — to shout

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