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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. game — a match
  8. ground — crushed
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. fine — high quality
  11. ground — a position
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bulb — for light
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — wild animals
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bulb — for light
  19. fine — all right
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. stand — to bear

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