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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wake — a trail
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. net — for catching
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. bore — to drill
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. row — a line
  11. deal — to handle
  12. bore — to tire
  13. kid — child
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. pound — a weight
  16. net — after costs
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. net — in sport
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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