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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: swing · rash · wax · toast · bank · spring · cell · prune

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. spring — of water
  2. bank — for money
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. bank — of a river
  5. wax — to grow
  6. spring — a coil
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. swing — to play on
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. cell — in biology
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. swing — music
  14. cell — a phone
  15. rash — hasty
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. spring — the season
  18. swing — in golf
  19. prune — to trim
  20. toast — bread
  21. bank — for money
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — a series
  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