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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. charge — a price
  3. bass — the fish
  4. shower — rain
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bass — low music
  7. track — a song
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pit — a hole
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. kick — in football
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. charge — electricity
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bat — the animal
  16. track — to keep track
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. track — a path
  20. charge — in control
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. pit — in a race
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. bat — for baseball

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