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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. rule — a law
  4. land — ground
  5. bore — to drill
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. branch — a division
  16. land — a country
  17. land — to come down
  18. rule — government
  19. wax — to grow
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bark — to shout
  22. fall — the season
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bore — to tire

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