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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 116 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: deal · plane · band · prune · wake · chip · wax · spell

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spell — letters
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. spell — a short time
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. plane — a tool
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — to handle
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. spell — magic
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — for betting
  19. band — a music group
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. band — a ring
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. prune — to trim

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