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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bear — the animal
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. wound — an injury
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. last — to go on
  15. prune — to trim
  16. board — to get on
  17. march — the month
  18. last — finally
  19. wax — to grow
  20. last — final
  21. bear — the animal
  22. board — a committee
  23. wound — an injury
  24. board — a flat piece

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