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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. row — a line
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. season — of the year
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. rush — hurry
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wax — to grow
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. row — to paddle
  21. prune — to trim
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. cabinet — ministers

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