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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — in biology
  6. field — a subject
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wax — to grow
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. field — farmland
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — a coil
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to bend
  15. spring — the season
  16. field — for sport
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. bank — for money
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. toast — bread
  21. bank — of a river
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bank — for money

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