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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 116 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: wound · sharp · wax · tube · current · bark · hide · bore

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tube — the underground
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. current — happening now
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. tube — a container
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. current — electric
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. wax — to grow
  14. sharp — clever
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. bore — to drill
  17. bark — to shout
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. current — of water
  24. wound — an injury

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