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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. key — the most important part
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. key — for a lock
  8. squash — to crush
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. spring — of water
  11. craft — a skill
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. content — happy
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. capital — money
  16. key — in music
  17. capital — a city
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. craft — boats
  21. spring — a coil
  22. content — the amount
  23. spring — the season
  24. trunk — of a car

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