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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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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mate — to breed
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. content — the amount
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mine — for digging
  11. content — happy
  12. mate — a partner
  13. land — to come down
  14. mark — a grade
  15. land — a country
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. land — ground
  18. mark — a trace

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