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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 116 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. race — a contest
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. spell — letters
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pass — a permit
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. present — there
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — a gift
  15. spell — magic
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. race — the arms race
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. kid — to tease
  23. race — humankind
  24. trunk — of a tree

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