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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. cue — for pool
  5. can — a tin
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. spell — magic
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. cue — a hint
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. band — a ring
  17. spell — a short time
  18. can — a tin
  19. cue — a signal
  20. spell — letters
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bat — the animal
  23. can — to be able to
  24. bat — for baseball

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