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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. file — a line of people
  3. game — a match
  4. bass — low music
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. file — a tool
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. track — a path
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. track — a song
  14. file — a document
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a friend
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. track — to keep track
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. hide — to keep secret

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