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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. row — to paddle
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mark — a trace
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. mark — a grade
  13. chair — a leader
  14. pitch — completely
  15. shower — rain
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pitch — a sports field

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