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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 116 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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. content — happy
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. charge — in control
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. net — in sport
  8. race — a contest
  9. field — a subject
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. field — farmland
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — the arms race
  15. content — the amount
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a face
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. field — for sport
  20. net — after costs
  21. mug — a cup
  22. charge — a price
  23. net — for catching
  24. charge — electricity

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