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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rock — a stone
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. cold — an illness
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — the earth
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. file — a document
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. ground — crushed
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. mouse — the animal

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