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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — in sport
  4. spring — of water
  5. wax — to grow
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. pop — music
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. spring — a coil
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. spring — the season
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. key — the most important part
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — in music
  23. net — after costs
  24. branch — a division

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