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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fine — all right
  4. face — to confront
  5. prune — to trim
  6. roll — a list
  7. face — part of the head
  8. club — a group
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. wax — to grow
  12. hand — help
  13. fine — high quality
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. face — to point toward
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. club — for dancing
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. roll — a cake
  24. club — for golf

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