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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: wax · mate · stick · file · perch · prune · staff · rule

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. mate — to breed
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. staff — employees
  7. file — a tool
  8. rule — government
  9. prune — to trim
  10. file — a document
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. file — a line of people
  15. mate — a friend
  16. staff — a stick
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. wax — to grow
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rule — a law
  22. staff — employees
  23. mate — a partner
  24. prune — the fruit

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