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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. cue — for pool
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. present — the time now
  7. stock — shares
  8. spring — the season
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. spring — a coil
  12. scale — in music
  13. branch — a division
  14. cue — a signal
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. spring — of water
  17. bark — to shout
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. present — a gift
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. scale — size or range
  22. stock — goods
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cue — a hint

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