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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wax — to grow
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. net — after costs
  8. cap — of ice
  9. prune — to trim
  10. field — for sport
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wake — a trail
  17. cap — a lid
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. field — farmland
  20. cap — a hat
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. sharp — clever

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