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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 · wax · track · rest · wake · date · chair · snap

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. track — a song
  3. track — a path
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. prune — to trim
  9. track — to keep track
  10. wax — to grow
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. rest — what's left
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. date — the fruit
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wake — a trail
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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