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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bore — to tire
  8. capital — a city
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bore — to drill
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. capital — money
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. pitcher — a jug

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