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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. game — wild animals
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bank — of a river
  7. rash — hasty
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — the underground
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. rash — a series
  14. chair — a leader
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bank — for money
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. tube — a container
  21. bank — for money
  22. game — a match
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. fork — in a road

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