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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: patient · face · mug · bark · ball · foot · capital · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. foot — a measure
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — a face
  13. face — part of the head
  14. mug — to rob
  15. capital — a city
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bark — to shout
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. face — to point toward
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. wax — to grow
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. face — to confront
  24. capital — money

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