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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: foot · date · wound · perch · cell · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wound — an injury
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. foot — a measure
  8. date — the fruit
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. perch — the fish
  11. cell — in biology
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wax — to grow
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. foot — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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