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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. spring — of water
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pitch — completely
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. spring — the season
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mate — a partner
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. snap — to click
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. mate — a friend
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. mate — to breed
  24. prune — to trim

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