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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: prune · stand · chair · jam · pop · straw · wax · row

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. pop — music
  3. row — a line
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wax — to grow
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. prune — to trim
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. prune — to trim
  13. stand — to bear
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. row — to paddle
  18. pop — to visit
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. pop — soda

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