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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. field — for sport
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. field — farmland
  7. mug — to rob
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. pop — music
  10. field — a subject
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. mug — a face
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wake — a trail
  16. prune — to trim
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. mug — a cup
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pop — soda
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wax — to grow
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. snap — to click

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