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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: bark · bay · wax · mark · cap · court · race · arm

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. court — of law
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bark — to shout
  8. race — a contest
  9. court — of a king
  10. mark — a grade
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. cap — a hat
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a lid
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. race — the arms race
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. race — humankind

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