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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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Word bank
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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wax — to grow
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. spell — a short time
  6. game — wild animals
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wound — an injury
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. game — a match
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. staff — employees
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. spell — magic
  19. staff — employees
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. spell — letters
  24. lash — to lash out

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