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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 120 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: wax · chip · cold · straw · march · arm · dip · trunk

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. chip — to eat
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wax — to grow
  9. chip — for betting
  10. march — music
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. march — the month
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. cold — not warm
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. cold — an illness
  24. march — the month

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