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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. staff — employees
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. hand — in cards
  9. staff — a stick
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — music
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — to shout
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chip — for betting
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pop — to visit
  18. staff — employees
  19. chip — to eat
  20. plane — a tool
  21. hand — help
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. chip — in a computer

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