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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. perch — the fish
  5. roll — a cake
  6. object — an aim
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. prune — to trim
  11. chest — of your body
  12. object — a thing
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. roll — a list
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. board — a committee
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. prune — to trim
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. board — to get on
  24. prune — the fruit

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