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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. prune — to trim
  5. track — a song
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. clip — for paper
  10. wax — to grow
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — the cause
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. track — to keep track
  16. track — a path
  17. clip — a video
  18. prune — to trim
  19. clip — to cut
  20. foot — a measure
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. root — of a word
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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