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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. spring — the season
  3. mug — to rob
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. fine — all right
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. spring — of water
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. date — the fruit
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. fine — high quality
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. mug — a face
  19. tube — a container
  20. mug — a cup
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. bat — the animal
  24. tube — the underground

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