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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. capital — money
  4. cue — a hint
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. capital — a city
  7. cue — for pool
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. field — for sport
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. cell — in biology
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. field — farmland
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cue — a signal

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