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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — after costs
  4. key — for a lock
  5. snap — to click
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — a position
  11. net — in sport
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. key — in music
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. ground — crushed
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. spring — a coil

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