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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — a lid
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. game — wild animals
  15. cap — of ice
  16. prune — to trim
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. game — a match

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