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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. suit — to fit
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. suit — clothes
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. shower — to wash
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. key — for a lock
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. suit — in cards
  19. key — the most important part
  20. pitch — completely
  21. key — in music
  22. shower — rain
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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