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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 116 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. chair — a leader
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. cap — of ice
  6. current — of water
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cap — a lid
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. track — a path
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. net — in sport
  13. hand — in cards
  14. current — electric
  15. current — happening now
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. net — after costs
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. cap — a hat
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. hand — help
  22. track — to keep track
  23. track — a song
  24. net — for catching

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