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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. spell — letters
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. track — a path
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. prune — to trim
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — to get on
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — a short time
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. capital — money
  13. prune — to trim
  14. track — to keep track
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. capital — a city
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. track — a song
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. capital — a big letter

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