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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. bark — to shout
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. band — a music group
  6. wax — to grow
  7. band — a ring
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lean — thin
  10. fork — in a road
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. lean — to bend
  14. game — wild animals
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. game — a match
  18. rash — hasty
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fork — a garden 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