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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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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: jam · bark · face · wax · temple · prune · chest · snap

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. chest — of your body
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. face — to confront
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. snap — to click
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. face — part of the head
  14. wax — to grow
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — to shout
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. chest — a box
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. prune — to trim
  23. face — to point toward
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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