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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: prune · pitcher · wax · pop · trunk · cue · court · arm

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. court — for sport
  7. wax — to grow
  8. court — of a king
  9. cue — a signal
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. pop — soda
  13. pop — music
  14. court — of law
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pop — to visit
  17. cue — for pool
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cue — a hint
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. prune — to trim

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