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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. wax — to grow
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pass — a permit
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bear — the animal
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. swing — music
  11. stem — to come from
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. swing — in golf
  16. land — ground
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. land — to come down
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. bear — the animal
  22. swing — to play on
  23. land — a country
  24. trunk — of a tree

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