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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 116 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. wound — an injury
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. capital — money
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. rash — a series
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bear — the animal
  19. tube — a container
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. capital — a city
  22. rash — hasty
  23. tube — the underground
  24. bear — the animal

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