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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: leaves · kick · fork · content · prune · pop · wax · staff

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. staff — employees
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. prune — to trim
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. wax — to grow
  8. staff — employees
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. content — happy
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. kick — in football
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. prune — to trim
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. staff — a stick
  24. content — the amount

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