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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 116 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. spring — the season
  4. drill — a practice
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. drill — army training
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. spring — a coil
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. spring — of water
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a face
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. drill — the tool
  24. cap — a lid

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