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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: trunk · dip · present · wax · fork · cell · foot · key

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. present — there
  4. wax — to grow
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — in music
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. dip — to sink
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. foot — a measure
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. cell — in biology
  18. present — the time now
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. key — for a lock
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. fork — in a road

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