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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bat — the animal
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. can — a tin
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. can — a tin
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. can — to be able to
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. net — for catching
  23. fork — in a road
  24. tear — to rip

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