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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. club — for dancing
  7. net — for catching
  8. can — a tin
  9. charge — electricity
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. net — after costs
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. club — a group
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. charge — a price
  17. charge — in control
  18. club — for golf
  19. can — to be able to
  20. hand — in cards
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. can — a tin
  24. net — in sport

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