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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. foot — a measure
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. saw — the tool
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. file — a document
  9. saw — the tool
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. dip — to sink
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. ball — a great time
  15. file — a tool
  16. ball — a dance
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. file — a line of people
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. foot — part of the body

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