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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. suit — clothes
  4. suit — to fit
  5. key — for a lock
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. file — a tool
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — to grow
  12. board — a committee
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. file — a document
  15. cold — an illness
  16. key — the most important part
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. bark — to shout
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. suit — in cards
  23. board — to get on
  24. key — in music

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