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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: wax · board · bat · field · bark · plane · fork · pop

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. plane — a tool
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. field — for sport
  7. pop — to visit
  8. bark — to shout
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wax — to grow
  11. board — to get on
  12. pop — music
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. board — a committee
  15. fork — in a road
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. field — a subject
  18. pop — soda
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. field — farmland
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. wax — in the ear

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