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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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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: prune · fork · wax · mark · wind · mate · hand · plane

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. wind — moving air
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mate — to breed
  5. hand — in cards
  6. mate — a partner
  7. wax — to grow
  8. mark — a trace
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. plane — a tool
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. hand — help
  22. prune — to trim
  23. mate — a friend
  24. wind — to turn a key

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