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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
468
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: bark · cap · band · stem · scale · wax · craft · bat

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. scale — size or range
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. scale — in music
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. band — a ring
  11. wax — to grow
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. stem — to come from
  14. bat — the animal
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. cap — a hat
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. band — a music group
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cap — a lid

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