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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. shower — to wash
  8. press — newspapers
  9. club — for golf
  10. press — to push
  11. rash — a series
  12. pound — a weight
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. press — a publisher
  16. rash — hasty
  17. club — a group
  18. trunk — of a tree

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