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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ground · march · trunk · wax · root · lean · mine · cell

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. cell — in biology
  6. mine — for digging
  7. lean — to bend
  8. wax — to grow
  9. march — the month
  10. root — of a word
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. march — music
  13. cell — a phone
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. root — the cause
  19. march — the month
  20. ground — the earth
  21. lean — thin
  22. root — of a plant
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. ground — a position

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