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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — a trail
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bound — tied together
  8. net — in sport
  9. bound — certain
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pass — a permit
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wax — to grow
  17. net — after costs
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bound — obliged
  24. saw — the tool

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