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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. track — a path
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. net — after costs
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. clip — to cut
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. net — in sport
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wax — to grow
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. net — for catching
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. foot — a measure
  19. clip — a video
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. clip — for paper
  22. track — a song
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. foot — the bottom

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