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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. wax — to grow
  3. prune — to trim
  4. net — after costs
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. net — for catching
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — to get on
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. net — in sport
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fork — in a road
  15. board — a committee
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. kid — child

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