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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. stand — to bear
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. tube — a container
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. snap — to click
  17. stock — shares
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. sharp — clever
  20. shower — rain
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. stock — goods
  23. mine — for digging
  24. shower — to wash

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