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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 120 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. scale — in music
  4. club — a group
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. bark — to shout
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. cap — of ice
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. club — for golf
  18. cap — a lid
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. cap — a hat
  24. vault — a safe

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