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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. roll — a list
  3. craft — boats
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bat — the animal
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. land — ground
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. charge — in control
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. craft — a skill
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — a country
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — electricity
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. roll — a cake

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