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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. bank — for money
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. field — a subject
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bank — of a river
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. field — for sport
  9. clip — to cut
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — to grow
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. spell — letters
  16. field — farmland
  17. bank — for money
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. club — for dancing
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wake — a trail
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for golf

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