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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. prune — to trim
  10. march — the month
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. march — music
  15. prune — to trim
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. fork — in a road
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. march — the month
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — a trail

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