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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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. band — a ring
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. wax — to grow
  17. stem — to come from
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. kick — in football
  22. band — a music group
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. trunk — of a car

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