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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. rash — a series
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a signal
  5. fork — in a road
  6. shower — to wash
  7. tear — to rip
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cue — a hint
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. tear — from crying
  16. deal — to handle
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. rash — hasty
  19. shower — rain
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. arm — part of the body

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