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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. season — of the year
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. rash — hasty
  22. branch — a division
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. season — in sport

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