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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 124 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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. track — a song
  3. track — a path
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. pass — a permit
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. cold — not warm
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bass — low music
  17. sharp — clever
  18. stand — to bear
  19. cold — an illness
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. track — to keep track
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. nail — for a hammer

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