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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. prune — to trim
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. file — a document
  6. spell — magic
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. file — a line of people
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. file — a tool
  15. wax — to grow
  16. rush — hurry
  17. spell — letters
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bore — to drill
  24. spell — a short time

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