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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 120 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: bark · wax · spring · row · current · rule · clip · safe

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. current — happening now
  5. clip — for paper
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. bark — to shout
  8. current — electric
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. clip — to cut
  12. wax — to grow
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. spring — the season
  15. rule — government
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. spring — a coil
  18. current — of water
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. row — to paddle
  22. spring — of water
  23. clip — a video
  24. rule — a law

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