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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. band — a ring
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. mug — a face
  8. tear — from crying
  9. clip — to cut
  10. mark — a grade
  11. key — for a lock
  12. clip — a video
  13. stem — to come from
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a music group
  16. mug — a cup
  17. tear — from crying
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. mark — a trace
  21. clip — for paper
  22. key — in music
  23. key — the most important part
  24. tear — to rip

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