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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. vault — a safe
  3. snap — to click
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. band — a ring
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. rock — music
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. net — after costs
  13. field — for sport
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. prune — to trim
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. band — a music group
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — a subject
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wax — in the ear

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