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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · ruler · lash · wax · bark · capital

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. kick — in football
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bark — to shout
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. wax — to grow
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. lash — to lash out

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