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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: mouse · stem · fine · fan · wax · bark · wound · ground

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. ground — crushed
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fine — all right
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. stem — to come from
  20. ground — a position
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. ground — the earth

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