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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. object — an aim
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. row — a line
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. chair — a leader
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. object — to protest
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. stem — to come from
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. object — a thing
  20. rash — a series
  21. row — to paddle
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. chair — a professorship

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