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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — in music
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. pit — in a race
  15. lie — to recline
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pit — a hole
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. tube — a container
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. tube — the underground
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hide — to keep secret

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