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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. fork — in a road
  4. stock — goods
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. clip — to cut
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. pass — a permit
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. clip — a video
  20. chest — a box
  21. stock — shares
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. wax — to grow
  24. fork — to eat with

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