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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. chest — of your body
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. ground — crushed
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. ground — the earth
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bore — to tire
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. date — the fruit
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ground — a position
  17. chest — a box
  18. bore — to drill
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bore — gave birth

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