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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 120 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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. key — for a lock
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cue — a signal
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. cue — for pool
  10. key — in music
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. key — the most important part
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. ground — a position
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. ground — the earth
  19. branch — a division
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cue — a hint
  22. ground — crushed
  23. hand — help
  24. stand — to bear

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