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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.

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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. pit — in a race
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wax — to grow
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. prune — to trim
  9. board — to get on
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. board — a committee
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — a box
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. chest — of your body

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