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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. track — a song
  3. wax — to grow
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bound — obliged
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. shower — to wash
  8. track — to keep track
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. chest — a box
  11. bound — tied together
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. track — a path
  14. last — to go on
  15. chest — of your body
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bound — certain
  19. last — final
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. shower — rain
  23. chest — of your body
  24. last — finally

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