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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: deal · wax · bark · last · plane · vault · cold · tube

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. cold — not warm
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bark — to shout
  7. last — to go on
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. tube — a container
  10. cold — an illness
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. plane — a tool
  13. vault — a safe
  14. last — finally
  15. wax — to grow
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. deal — to handle
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. last — final
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. plane — an aircraft

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