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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. band — a music group
  4. bass — the fish
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bass — low music
  8. prune — to trim
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. content — the amount
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bark — to shout
  16. content — happy
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. wax — to grow
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. band — a ring

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