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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mine — for digging
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. craft — a skill
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. fall — the season
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. pound — a weight
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. branch — a division
  19. pit — a hole
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. pit — in a race
  24. fall — to drop

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