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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a line of people
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. kick — in football
  7. lie — to recline
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. file — a tool
  15. field — farmland
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. field — a subject
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. field — for sport

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