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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: pound · land · pass · board · kid · wax · leaves · trunk

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  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. trunk — of a car
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. land — ground
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. kid — to tease
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. board — to get on
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. land — a country
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. land — to come down
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pass — a permit
  20. board — a committee
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. kid — child
  23. pass — to succeed
  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