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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. spell — magic
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — a short time
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. mate — a partner
  11. mate — to breed
  12. net — in sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — in sport
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. net — for catching
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. mate — a friend
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. net — after costs
  24. branch — a division

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