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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. mate — a partner
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. net — in sport
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. net — for catching
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chip — to eat
  10. track — to keep track
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. mate — to breed
  14. ball — a great time
  15. mate — a friend
  16. track — a path
  17. snap — to click
  18. wind — moving air
  19. net — after costs
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. chip — for betting
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. track — a song

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