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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: march · coach · clip · track · wax · trunk · ground · pit

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — the earth
  5. track — a path
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. ground — a position
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — in a race
  13. march — music
  14. track — a song
  15. pit — a hole
  16. ground — crushed
  17. track — to keep track
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. march — the month
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — for paper
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wax — for sculpting

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