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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. row — a line
  3. drill — army training
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — a container
  6. date — the fruit
  7. mine — for digging
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. drill — a practice
  15. rock — music
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rock — a stone
  18. row — to paddle
  19. wind — moving air
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. drill — the tool
  24. date — on the calendar

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