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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. charge — electricity
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rest — what's left
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. cold — an illness
  8. season — in sport
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cold — not warm
  11. craft — a skill
  12. clip — a video
  13. bark — to shout
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. season — of the year
  16. craft — boats
  17. charge — in control
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. rest — a break
  21. charge — a price
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. clip — for paper
  24. season — to add flavour

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