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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. fall — the season
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. file — a tool
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. file — a line of people
  12. fall — to drop
  13. capital — a city
  14. wake — a trail
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. capital — money
  17. plane — a tool
  18. fall — to drop
  19. file — a document
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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