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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 116 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: row · clip · trunk · firm · cell · wax · last · safe

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. firm — steady
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. firm — decided
  8. row — to paddle
  9. last — finally
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. firm — a company
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. clip — to cut
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. last — to go on
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. last — final
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — a video
  22. row — a line
  23. cell — in biology
  24. safe — out of danger

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