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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: racket · mark · pound · wax · hand · prune · ground · file

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. ground — a position
  3. pound — a weight
  4. ground — crushed
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. file — a line of people
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. file — a tool
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. file — a document
  15. wax — to grow
  16. hand — help
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. ground — the earth
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — to pay attention

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