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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. can — a tin
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bound — certain
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wax — to grow
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. hand — help
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bound — obliged
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. hand — in cards
  24. wave — with your hand

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