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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. swing — to play on
  6. snap — to click
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. board — a committee
  10. swing — in golf
  11. row — a line
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. capital — a city
  14. rush — hurry
  15. capital — money
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. row — to paddle
  19. prune — to trim
  20. swing — music
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. prune — to trim
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. board — to get on

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