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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. foot — a measure
  4. shower — rain
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. swing — music
  8. shower — to wash
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. game — wild animals
  19. swing — to play on
  20. cold — not warm
  21. swing — in golf
  22. rush — hurry
  23. game — a match
  24. coach — a trainer

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