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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. board — to get on
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bound — certain
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. roll — a cake
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. roll — a list
  10. march — the month
  11. bound — tied together
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bark — to shout
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. board — a committee
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. march — the month
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. march — music
  24. pitch — completely

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