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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · swing · root · mate · bark · hand · bear · last

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. mate — a partner
  3. hand — help
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. root — of a word
  6. bark — to shout
  7. swing — music
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. hand — in cards
  10. swing — to play on
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bear — the animal
  13. mate — a friend
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. last — to go on
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. swing — in golf
  18. last — final
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wax — to grow
  22. mate — to breed
  23. last — finally
  24. root — of a plant

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