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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: pop · trunk · drill · stick · date · wax · cold · jam

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wax — to grow
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. pop — soda
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — the fruit
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. drill — army training
  15. pop — to visit
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pop — music
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. drill — a practice
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. drill — the tool
  24. cold — not warm

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