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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. cold — not warm
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. chip — to eat
  9. stock — shares
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stock — goods
  13. chip — for betting
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cold — an illness
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. trunk — of a car

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