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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. rash — hasty
  2. rash — a series
  3. bore — to drill
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — a box
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. wax — to grow
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. bark — of a tree
  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