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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spring · wax · file · plane · bowl · season · lie · prune

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. spring — a coil
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. spring — the season
  6. season — in sport
  7. plane — a tool
  8. spring — of water
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. file — a line of people
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — to recline
  17. season — of the year
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. prune — to trim
  22. file — a document
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. file — a tool

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