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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · plane · wax · field · pop · lash · file · firm

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pop — music
  4. firm — steady
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. pop — soda
  11. field — for sport
  12. file — a line of people
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. firm — decided
  15. field — farmland
  16. wax — to grow
  17. field — a subject
  18. file — a document
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. firm — a company
  23. file — a tool
  24. plane — a tool

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