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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 116 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. hand — help
  5. band — a music group
  6. object — an aim
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. cap — a hat
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. cold — not warm
  16. object — to protest
  17. object — a thing
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cap — of ice
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cap — a lid
  23. band — a ring
  24. leaves — lets stay

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