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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: field · key · bass · prune · wax · lean · mark · mine

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bass — low music
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. key — for a lock
  7. mine — for digging
  8. key — the most important part
  9. field — a subject
  10. prune — to trim
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. lean — to bend
  13. bass — the fish
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. field — farmland
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mark — a trace
  19. field — for sport
  20. prune — to trim
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. lean — thin
  23. key — in music
  24. mark — a grade

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