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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. net — after costs
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. roll — a cake
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. land — to come down
  7. mate — a friend
  8. land — a country
  9. net — in sport
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. last — finally
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. roll — a list
  14. last — final
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. tube — the underground
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. net — for catching
  19. mate — to breed
  20. last — to go on
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. mate — a partner
  23. tube — a container
  24. land — ground

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