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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. spring — of water
  3. stand — to bear
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. spring — the season
  7. cold — not warm
  8. spring — a coil
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. current — of water
  12. current — happening now
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. current — electric
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. content — the amount
  18. wax — to grow
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. content — happy
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. content — videos and posts

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