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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. bark — to shout
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. bat — the animal
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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