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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. ground — the earth
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. wax — to grow
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. ground — a position
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. game — a match
  13. rush — hurry
  14. can — to be able to
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. can — a tin
  17. kick — in football
  18. can — a tin
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. game — wild animals
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. ground — crushed

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