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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. tube — the underground
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. rest — what's left
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. tube — a container
  11. bass — low music
  12. cold — an illness
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mate — to breed
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mate — a partner
  23. rest — a break
  24. mate — a friend

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