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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. prune — to trim
  7. saw — the tool
  8. wax — to grow
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. plane — a tool
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. row — a line
  16. pop — music
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pop — soda
  19. pop — to visit
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — from crying
  23. dip — to sink
  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