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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bank — of a river
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. lean — thin
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — for money
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. lean — to bend
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. game — a match
  22. fork — in a road
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. fork — a garden tool

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