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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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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: pit · craft · bat · bear · march · race · wax · trunk

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. march — the month
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. race — the arms race
  5. bear — the animal
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. race — humankind
  8. craft — boats
  9. race — a contest
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. march — music
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. craft — a skill
  16. march — the month
  17. pit — in a race
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. bear — the animal
  24. trunk — of a tree

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