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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. tube — a container
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pound — a weight
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. track — to keep track
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. sharp — clever

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