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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  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. present — there
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. prune — to trim
  4. present — the time now
  5. board — a committee
  6. last — to go on
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. board — to get on
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. present — a gift
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wax — to grow
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. vault — a safe
  19. last — final
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. last — finally
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. tear — from crying
  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