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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've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. race — a contest
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. race — the arms race
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. spring — of water
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. kid — child
  12. spring — a coil
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. race — humankind
  15. spring — the season
  16. pound — a weight
  17. kid — to tease
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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