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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. pop — to visit
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. roll — a cake
  7. roll — a list
  8. pop — soda
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pit — a hole
  12. current — of water
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pop — music
  15. bat — the animal
  16. field — a subject
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. field — for sport
  19. current — happening now
  20. pass — a permit
  21. current — electric
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. field — farmland
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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