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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: wax · branch · degree · jam · trunk · foot · mark · date

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. mark — a trace
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wax — to grow
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. mark — a grade
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. degree — from a university
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division
  19. date — the fruit
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. foot — a measure

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