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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — a series
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — hurry
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. last — to go on
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. row — a line
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. rash — hasty
  15. row — to paddle
  16. kid — to tease
  17. last — final
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. last — finally
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a hole
  23. kid — child
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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