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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 120 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 · clip · land · lie · snap · prune · mark · rest

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. snap — to click
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — ground
  8. wax — to grow
  9. land — to come down
  10. rest — what's left
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — a video
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a trace
  20. prune — to trim
  21. lie — to recline
  22. clip — to cut
  23. land — a country
  24. rest — a break

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