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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. rush — hurry
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. row — a line
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bear — the animal
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. track — a song
  24. track — a path

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