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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: rest · wax · bark · club · land · pitch · stick · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. wax — to grow
  4. club — for dancing
  5. rest — what's left
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. club — a group
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. land — a country
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. club — for golf
  14. bark — to shout
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. rest — a break
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. pitch — completely
  22. land — ground
  23. toast — bread
  24. land — to come down

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