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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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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. wax — to grow
  3. mug — a cup
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. mug — a face
  6. field — for sport
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. spring — of water
  9. mug — to rob
  10. field — farmland
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. spring — the season
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. spring — a coil

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