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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bear — the animal
  5. band — a music group
  6. prune — to trim
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cap — of ice
  9. band — a ring
  10. prune — to trim
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. hand — help
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. cap — a hat

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