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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 · bat · chair · fork · pass · ball · safe · prune

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — to grow
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pass — a permit
  14. fork — in a road
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. ball — a great time
  17. prune — to trim
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. ball — a dance
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. bat — the animal
  24. ball — a round shape

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