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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. band — a ring
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. band — a music group
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. firm — decided
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. firm — a company
  13. snap — to click
  14. mate — a partner
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. mate — to breed
  19. firm — steady
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. game — wild animals
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. game — a match
  24. band — a rubber band

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