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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.

Make a worksheet

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: scale · racket · wax · bark · cold · firm · court · wake

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wax — to grow
  3. firm — steady
  4. firm — decided
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. court — for sport
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bark — to shout
  10. court — of law
  11. scale — in music
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. cold — an illness
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. firm — a company
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wake — a trail
  21. scale — size or range
  22. court — of a king
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. cold — not warm

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