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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. foot — a measure
  4. rush — hurry
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. bear — the animal
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mate — a friend
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. clip — to cut
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. saw — the tool
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. mate — a partner

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