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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. cap — a hat
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. drill — a practice
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. march — music
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. march — the month
  13. fork — in a road
  14. drill — army training
  15. snap — to click
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. drill — the tool
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. firm — decided
  21. firm — a company
  22. march — the month
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. firm — steady

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