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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. chest — a box
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. plane — a tool
  5. chest — of your body
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — army training
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. drill — the tool
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. wake — a trail
  17. chip — to eat
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. chip — for betting
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. kick — in football
  24. plane — in geometry

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