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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bank — for money
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — a partner
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. scale — size or range
  14. wound — an injury
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — in music
  17. bank — of a river
  18. wound — an injury
  19. season — of the year
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. season — in sport
  22. mate — to breed
  23. bank — for money
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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