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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. spring — a coil
  3. field — farmland
  4. cue — for pool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bark — to shout
  10. spring — of water
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bank — for money
  14. field — a subject
  15. wind — moving air
  16. field — for sport
  17. cue — a signal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wax — to grow
  20. spring — the season
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bank — of a river
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. cue — a hint

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