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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 124 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. present — a gift
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. hand — help
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. land — ground
  13. present — the time now
  14. land — a country
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spell — letters
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. land — to come down
  21. wax — to grow
  22. spell — a short time
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. spell — magic

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