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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. key — the most important part
  3. charge — in control
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. field — farmland
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. field — for sport
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — electricity
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. tube — the underground
  15. key — for a lock
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — to come from
  19. key — in music
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — a container
  22. bass — the fish
  23. field — a subject
  24. trunk — of a car

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