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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. track — a path
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. roll — a list
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. land — to come down
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. last — final
  14. last — finally
  15. last — to go on
  16. land — a country
  17. roll — a cake
  18. land — ground
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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