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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. charge — in control
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. row — to paddle
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bore — to tire
  16. rash — hasty
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. row — a line
  19. bore — to drill
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — electricity
  22. wax — to grow
  23. mine — for digging
  24. prune — to trim

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