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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 116 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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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. swing — in golf
  4. cell — in biology
  5. last — final
  6. cell — a phone
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. wax — to grow
  10. swing — music
  11. last — to go on
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. last — finally

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