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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: wax · land · bark · foot · lean · ball · press · rule

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a great time
  4. lean — to bend
  5. rule — government
  6. press — newspapers
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. rule — a law
  9. lean — thin
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. land — a country
  12. land — to come down
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. foot — a measure
  20. wax — to grow
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. land — ground
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. bark — to shout

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