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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bass — the fish
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. bark — to shout
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. root — of a word
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. root — of a plant
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a music group
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bass — low music
  19. court — of a king
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. root — the cause
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wax — to grow
  24. fall — to drop

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