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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: object · perch · bear · lean · bark · bat · wax · kid

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. perch — the fish
  5. wax — to grow
  6. kid — child
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. lean — to bend
  10. bat — the animal
  11. lean — thin
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. object — to protest
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. object — an aim
  16. bear — the animal
  17. object — a thing
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bark — to shout
  21. kid — to tease
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. bat — for baseball

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