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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. club — a group
  4. season — in sport
  5. row — a line
  6. wax — to grow
  7. season — of the year
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a city
  10. bass — low music
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. club — for golf
  13. rule — government
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bark — to shout
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. rule — a law
  22. bass — the fish
  23. club — for dancing
  24. rule — to rule out

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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