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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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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. prune — to trim
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. content — the amount
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. charge — electricity
  8. charge — a price
  9. rock — music
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. charge — in control
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. wax — to grow
  23. rock — a stone
  24. ball — a great time

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