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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. cap — of ice
  3. spell — letters
  4. cap — a lid
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bore — to drill
  8. spell — a short time
  9. cap — a hat
  10. last — final
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. stem — to come from
  18. spell — magic
  19. last — to go on
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. last — finally
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wax — to grow

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