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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. track — a song
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. wax — to grow
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. stock — goods
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. track — to keep track
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. track — a path
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. branch — a division
  16. stock — shares
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. wax — for sculpting

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