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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a great time
  4. rest — what's left
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bank — for money
  7. ball — a dance
  8. bank — for money
  9. lean — to bend
  10. bank — of a river
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. rest — a break
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rest — what's left
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. lean — thin
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cold — not warm

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