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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. wax — to grow
  4. roll — a cake
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. tube — the underground
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. stand — to bear
  10. fork — in a road
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. roll — a list
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bark — to shout
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. tube — a container
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. wound — an injury

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