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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. bark — to shout
  3. wax — to grow
  4. key — for a lock
  5. race — a contest
  6. bound — tied together
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. key — the most important part
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. dip — to sink
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bound — certain
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. net — after costs
  18. race — humankind
  19. net — for catching
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. bound — obliged
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. key — in music
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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