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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 116 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: chair · bulb · tear · hand · wax · rest · wound · prune

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rest — what's left
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. tear — from crying
  10. rest — a break
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hand — in cards
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bulb — for light
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. wax — to grow
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chair — a leader
  23. hand — help
  24. tear — to rip

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