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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: track · firm · root · wax · bark · date · row · cell

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bark — to shout
  4. cell — a phone
  5. firm — decided
  6. root — the cause
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a song
  9. firm — a company
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. row — to paddle
  12. root — of a word
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wax — to grow
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. row — a line
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. cell — in biology
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. track — a path
  23. root — of a plant
  24. firm — steady

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