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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 120 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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. branch — a division
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. ground — a position
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. charge — electricity
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a match
  13. ground — crushed
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. ground — the earth
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — the tool
  19. charge — a price
  20. file — a document
  21. drill — a practice
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. charge — in control
  24. game — a kind of play

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