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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 120 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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. clip — to cut
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — a thing
  5. wax — to grow
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. clip — a video
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. object — to protest
  13. clip — for paper
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. swing — to play on
  18. swing — in golf
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. foot — a measure
  22. swing — music
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. straw — a straw man

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