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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. staff — employees
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wind — moving air
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. hand — in cards
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. staff — a stick
  12. mate — a friend
  13. staff — employees
  14. board — a committee
  15. hand — help
  16. mate — a partner
  17. stock — shares
  18. wind — moving air
  19. board — to get on
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — music
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. stock — goods
  24. hand — part of the body

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