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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. spring — a coil
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. face — to confront
  9. spring — of water
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. spring — the season
  14. face — part of the head
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — in sport
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — not warm
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. net — for catching

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