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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: coach · cap · wax · bat · scale · plane · land · prune

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. plane — a tool
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. wax — to grow
  6. cap — a lid
  7. land — to come down
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. scale — in music
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. prune — to trim
  13. land — ground
  14. scale — size or range
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — of ice
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. land — a country
  24. coach — a trainer

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