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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 120 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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bat — the animal
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — to grow
  7. prune — to trim
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. prune — to trim
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. foot — a measure
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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