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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — humankind
  5. kid — child
  6. game — a match
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. prune — to trim
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bass — the fish
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. fork — in a road
  19. game — wild animals
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. kid — to tease
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bass — low music

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