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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 120 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. drill — army training
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — part of the head
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. prune — to trim
  12. pound — a weight
  13. board — a committee
  14. face — to confront
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. clip — a video
  18. board — to get on
  19. prune — to trim
  20. clip — for paper
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. drill — the tool
  23. wax — to grow
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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