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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bear — the animal
  5. drill — the tool
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. bear — the animal
  12. chest — of your body
  13. drill — a practice
  14. chest — of your body
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. branch — a division
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — music
  22. drill — army training
  23. chest — a box
  24. hand — in cards

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