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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: bat · wax · land · stem · bark · rash · cabinet · ball

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. rash — a series
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. rash — hasty
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. wax — to grow
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bat — the animal
  21. land — a country
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — 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