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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 120 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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bulb — for light
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. file — a line of people
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. craft — boats
  14. file — a document
  15. pound — a weight
  16. bulb — for light
  17. craft — a skill
  18. file — a tool

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