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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.

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: row · chair · fall · wax · capital · bark · leaves · fan

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a line
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fall — to drop
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. capital — a city
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. wax — to grow
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. chair — a leader
  18. fall — the season
  19. capital — money
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. wax — in the ear

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