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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 120 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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. fall — to drop
  6. march — music
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. fall — the season
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. plane — a tool
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — moving air
  18. march — the month
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. march — the month
  21. hand — help
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. foot — a measure
  24. sharp — clever

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