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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bat — the animal
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. fine — all right
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. rash — hasty
  21. roll — a list
  22. rash — a series
  23. roll — a cake
  24. fine — high quality

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