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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: swing · pitch · wax · saw · prune · ground · board · season

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. ground — crushed
  6. pitch — completely
  7. swing — to play on
  8. ground — the earth
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. prune — to trim
  11. saw — the tool
  12. board — a committee
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. saw — the tool
  17. swing — in golf
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. season — of the year
  20. board — to get on
  21. ground — a position
  22. swing — music
  23. prune — to trim
  24. season — in sport

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