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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. pound — a weight
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. charge — a price
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pass — a permit
  22. charge — in control
  23. bat — the animal
  24. hide — animal skin

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