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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: bulb · prune · ground · snap · band · wax · cell · leaves

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. prune — to trim
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. snap — to click
  7. cell — in biology
  8. ground — crushed
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bulb — for light
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. prune — to trim
  18. band — a music group
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. band — a ring
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bulb — for light
  24. leaves — lets stay

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