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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. suit — to fit
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. land — a country
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. bark — to shout
  11. suit — in cards
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. land — to come down
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. band — a music group
  17. bore — to tire
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. suit — clothes
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. leaves — of a tree

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