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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.

Make a worksheet

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: wax · content · date · prune · hand · net · perch · snap

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. net — for catching
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. snap — to click
  10. prune — to trim
  11. date — the fruit
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. net — in sport
  14. content — the amount
  15. hand — help
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hand — in cards
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. perch — the fish
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. content — happy
  24. perch — for a bird

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