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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. row — to paddle
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. snap — to click
  19. pound — a weight
  20. row — a line
  21. fork — in a road
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a bank

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