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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 120 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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. hand — help
  5. fall — to drop
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. track — a song
  10. pit — a hole
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — in cards
  13. dip — to sink
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. fall — to drop
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. track — a path
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. track — to keep track
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. fall — the season

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