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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. pitch — completely
  4. fine — all right
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. cold — an illness
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. charge — electricity
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. branch — a division
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — a permit
  18. cold — not warm
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. charge — in control
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. charge — a price
  23. fine — high quality
  24. pitch — a sports field

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