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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 · calf · date · trunk · bark · court · file · branch

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. wax — to grow
  5. court — for sport
  6. file — a tool
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bark — to shout
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. branch — a division
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. date — the fruit
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. file — a line of people
  20. court — of a king
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. court — of law
  23. file — a document
  24. date — on the calendar

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