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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 120 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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bound — certain
  3. net — for catching
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rush — hurry
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. present — there
  9. present — a gift
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. present — the time now
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. capital — money
  14. bound — obliged
  15. wax — to grow
  16. net — in sport
  17. bound — tied together
  18. capital — a city
  19. net — after costs
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — to shout
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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