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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. present — the time now
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. game — wild animals
  8. present — there
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. drill — the tool
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. mate — a friend
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. hand — in cards
  17. drill — a practice
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. game — a match
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. mate — to breed
  23. drill — army training
  24. present — a gift

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