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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: arm · game · wind · trunk · wax · bear · kick · drill

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. kick — in football
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wind — moving air
  9. drill — army training
  10. bear — the animal
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — a match
  13. game — wild animals
  14. drill — the tool
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. bear — the animal
  20. drill — a practice
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. wind — moving air
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. wind — to turn a key

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