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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  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. trunk — of an elephant
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — a stone
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. rock — music
  8. game — a match
  9. drill — a practice
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — in football
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. drill — the tool
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. drill — army training
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  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