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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: hand · bark · cell · scale · bore · jam · wax · sharp

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bore — to drill
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — clever
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bore — to tire
  13. cell — a phone
  14. scale — in music
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. scale — size or range
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. hand — help

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