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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. march — the month
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. march — music
  7. pitch — completely
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. track — to keep track
  10. content — happy
  11. spring — a coil
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. spring — the season
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. spring — of water
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — the amount
  21. track — a path
  22. march — the month
  23. track — a song
  24. nail — for a hammer

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