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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. cue — for pool
  3. cue — a hint
  4. squash — the sport
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. net — in sport
  7. net — for catching
  8. land — to come down
  9. squash — to crush
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. pit — in a race
  14. bore — to drill
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. land — ground
  17. bore — to tire
  18. hand — in cards
  19. cue — a signal
  20. land — a country
  21. hand — help
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. net — after costs

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