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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. march — music
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a line of people
  9. prune — to trim
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. wax — to grow
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. key — the most important part
  15. march — the month
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. file — a document
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. prune — to trim
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. key — in music
  23. plane — a tool
  24. march — the month

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