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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. tear — to rip
  4. rock — music
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mark — a trace
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. mark — a grade
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. rock — a stone
  18. ball — a great time

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