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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. ball — a great time
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. clip — to cut
  6. lie — to recline
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — a group
  9. wound — an injury
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — a video
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. club — for dancing
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bass — the fish
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. wound — an injury
  19. ball — a dance
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bass — low music
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. temple — a place of worship

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