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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. object — to protest
  3. staff — employees
  4. prune — to trim
  5. object — an aim
  6. staff — a stick
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. race — a contest
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. spell — a short time
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. prune — to trim
  13. branch — a division
  14. race — the arms race
  15. spell — letters
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. spell — magic
  20. staff — employees
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. race — humankind
  23. wax — to grow
  24. object — a thing

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