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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. mate — to breed
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. snap — to click
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. mate — a friend
  11. fork — in a road
  12. key — the most important part
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. file — a line of people
  15. mate — a partner
  16. key — in music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. key — for a lock
  20. file — a tool
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. file — a document
  24. wax — to grow

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