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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: bass · ruler · net · wax · game · ball · bark · press

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bass — the fish
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. press — a publisher
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. net — for catching
  7. game — wild animals
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. net — after costs
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bass — low music
  12. net — in sport
  13. ball — a great time
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. bark — to shout
  19. game — a match
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. press — to push
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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