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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 124 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: file · cap · trunk · present · bark · board · cold · wax

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. present — the time now
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. present — there
  5. board — to get on
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a hat
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. board — a committee
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. cap — a lid
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cold — an illness
  22. file — a line of people
  23. cold — not warm
  24. present — a gift

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