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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. tube — the underground
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. lean — thin
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. ball — a great time
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mug — to rob
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wax — to grow
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. mug — a cup
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — a container
  18. mug — a face
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. date — the fruit
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. lean — to bend
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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