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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: trunk · wax · current · ground · straw · perch

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. wax — to grow
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. perch — the fish
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. ground — the earth
  11. current — happening now
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. ground — a position
  16. current — of water
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. current — electric

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