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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 120 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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. field — farmland
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. plane — a tool
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. field — a subject
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. kid — child
  23. field — for sport
  24. bear — the animal

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