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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  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. bat — the animal
  2. rush — hurry
  3. cold — an illness
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cue — a hint
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. cold — not warm
  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