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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. tube — a container
  3. firm — decided
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. stand — to bear
  7. firm — steady
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. firm — a company
  12. fork — in a road
  13. chest — a box
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. club — a group
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. tube — the underground
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bat — the animal
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. club — for golf
  24. trunk — of a tree

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