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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. last — finally
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. field — farmland
  6. dip — to sink
  7. cue — for pool
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pop — to visit
  10. field — for sport
  11. cue — a signal
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. cue — a hint
  16. field — a subject
  17. chair — a leader
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — soda

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