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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stem — to come from
  4. plane — a tool
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stock — goods
  10. spring — of water
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. spring — the season
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. spring — a coil
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. stock — shares

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