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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. rest — a break
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. race — the arms race
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. race — humankind
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rest — what's left
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. race — a contest
  18. toast — bread
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. wax — to grow
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. rest — what's left

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