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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 116 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bore — to drill
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. ground — a position
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. wax — to grow
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bound — certain
  12. ground — the earth
  13. squash — to crush
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — obliged
  19. saw — the tool
  20. bore — to tire
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. stem — to come from
  24. squash — the sport

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