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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. lean — to bend
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. scale — in music
  7. mine — for digging
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. lean — thin
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. rule — government
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bark — to shout
  14. race — the arms race
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. vault — a safe
  17. scale — size or range
  18. wax — to grow
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. race — humankind
  21. race — a contest
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. rule — a law
  24. rule — to rule out

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