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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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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: wind · chip · bank · net · capital · bark · wax · root

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bank — for money
  3. chip — for betting
  4. net — for catching
  5. capital — money
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. root — the cause
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — after costs
  12. wax — to grow
  13. net — in sport
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. root — of a word
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bank — of a river
  19. root — of a plant
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. capital — a city
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bank — for money

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