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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. content — the amount
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — clever
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. content — happy
  15. bark — to shout
  16. tear — to rip
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. tear — from crying

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