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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wake — a trail
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. land — to come down
  5. mark — a trace
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. row — to paddle
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. row — a line
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. land — a country
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. mark — a grade
  16. prune — to trim
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. prune — to trim
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. land — ground
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. straw — a straw man

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