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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. band — a ring
  3. court — of a king
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. present — the time now
  9. prune — to trim
  10. present — a gift
  11. court — of law
  12. present — there
  13. band — a music group
  14. lean — to bend
  15. wax — to grow
  16. court — for sport
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. pass — a permit
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. lean — thin
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. band — a rubber band

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