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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a friend
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cell — in biology
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. wound — an injury
  17. mate — a partner
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. fine — high quality
  20. mine — for digging
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. cell — a phone
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. fine — all right

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