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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. land — a country
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. kid — to tease
  12. prune — to trim
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. sharp — clever
  18. rock — a stone
  19. kid — child
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bass — the fish
  22. rock — music
  23. bass — low music
  24. rock — to move gently

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