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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. file — a tool
  5. bore — to drill
  6. row — to paddle
  7. game — a match
  8. file — a document
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. file — a line of people
  14. row — a line
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. capital — a city
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. capital — money
  20. wax — to grow
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. row — a quarrel

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