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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: bark · wax · key · hide · march · bat · bore · current

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. bore — to drill
  4. key — for a lock
  5. march — the month
  6. key — in music
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bore — to tire
  10. march — the month
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. current — electric
  15. current — happening now
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — the animal
  22. march — music
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. current — of water

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