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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. field — farmland
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. dip — to sink
  6. field — for sport
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. prune — to trim
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. pass — a permit
  12. field — a subject
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wax — to grow
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. kid — to tease
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. kid — child
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. deal — to handle
  24. wax — for sculpting

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