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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: board · bark · chair · wax · pass · race · chest · bowl

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. race — a contest
  9. pass — a permit
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chest — a box
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. race — humankind
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. board — a committee
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. race — the arms race
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. chair — a leader

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