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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. land — ground
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wax — to grow
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. mate — a partner
  10. fall — the season
  11. mate — to breed
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. pit — in a race
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mate — a friend
  18. land — a country
  19. scale — in music
  20. land — to come down
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — for sculpting

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