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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
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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: sharp · root · wax · tube · cold · board · bark · chest

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  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. wax — for sculpting
  2. root — the cause
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. tube — the underground
  5. cold — an illness
  6. wax — to grow
  7. board — to get on
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. root — of a word
  12. bark — to shout
  13. tube — a container
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. board — a committee
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. chest — of your body
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. chest — a box
  22. sharp — clever
  23. cold — not warm
  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