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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. cap — a hat
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cell — a phone
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. mark — a trace
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mark — a grade
  20. wax — to grow
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. cap — of ice
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. cell — in biology

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