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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: file · prune · wax · mine · safe · mark · tear · racket

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. mark — a trace
  3. tear — from crying
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wax — to grow
  14. file — a document
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mark — a grade
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. file — a tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. tear — from crying

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