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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. firm — decided
  3. firm — a company
  4. race — a contest
  5. fall — to drop
  6. firm — steady
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. fall — the season
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. sharp — clever
  14. content — the amount
  15. mine — for digging
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — the arms race
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. fall — to drop
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. sharp — with an edge

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