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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  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. wax — to grow
  2. ball — a dance
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. ball — a great time
  5. fork — in a road
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wake — a trail
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. root — of a plant
  11. race — a contest
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. pit — a hole
  14. root — of a word
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — humankind
  21. prune — to trim
  22. root — the cause
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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