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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. rock — music
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. shower — rain
  5. court — of a king
  6. wax — to grow
  7. scale — in music
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. mate — a friend
  14. court — of law
  15. scale — size or range
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bear — the animal
  19. rock — a stone
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. court — for sport
  24. wax — for sculpting

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