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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. prune — to trim
  3. last — to go on
  4. track — a song
  5. last — final
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. last — finally
  10. track — a path
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. lean — thin
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. toast — bread
  17. lean — to bend
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. prune — to trim
  23. track — to keep track
  24. pitch — a sports field

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