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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 · trunk · roll · cap · track · stem · file · rule

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. cap — of ice
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stem — to come from
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. file — a document
  12. roll — a list
  13. rule — government
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. cap — a lid
  16. roll — a cake
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cap — a hat
  22. rule — a law
  23. file — a tool
  24. trunk — of a car

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