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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: fork · bear · hide · wax · file · row · press · prune

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bear — the animal
  3. wax — to grow
  4. prune — to trim
  5. row — to paddle
  6. fork — in a road
  7. row — a line
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. press — a publisher
  11. file — a document
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. prune — to trim
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. file — a tool
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. press — newspapers
  24. press — to push

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