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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. foot — a measure
  4. object — a thing
  5. root — of a word
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. swing — music
  8. object — an aim
  9. race — the arms race
  10. swing — in golf
  11. root — the cause
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. row — a line
  14. object — to protest
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. race — a contest
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. race — humankind
  22. prune — to trim
  23. row — to paddle
  24. root — of a plant

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