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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. hand — help
  4. ground — a position
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. hand — in cards
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. file — a document
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. ground — crushed
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. stock — goods
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. kick — in football
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ground — the earth
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stock — shares
  21. file — a tool
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. file — a line of people

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