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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 116 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. file — a line of people
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. mug — to rob
  9. file — a tool
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. branch — a division
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. file — a document
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mug — a face
  23. wax — to grow
  24. mug — a cup

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