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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. mate — to breed
  5. rush — hurry
  6. mate — a partner
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. fork — in a road
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. last — to go on
  11. saw — the tool
  12. last — final
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mate — a friend
  15. last — finally
  16. season — of the year
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. saw — the tool
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. season — in sport
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. trunk — of a tree

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