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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 · snap · wax · cue · scale · rush · race · kid

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. kid — child
  4. scale — size or range
  5. prune — to trim
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. cue — a signal
  12. scale — in music
  13. rush — hurry
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. kid — to tease
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. race — humankind
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. race — a contest
  24. wax — to grow

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