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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. saw — the tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. date — the fruit
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. saw — the tool
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wax — to grow
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. race — humankind
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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