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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: track · firm · wax · saw · bark · march · kid · stock

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. stock — shares
  3. track — a path
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. kid — to tease
  6. track — to keep track
  7. march — the month
  8. track — a song
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. firm — a company
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. firm — steady
  14. saw — the tool
  15. firm — decided
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. march — music
  18. bark — to shout
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. stock — goods
  22. march — the month
  23. wax — to grow
  24. saw — the tool

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