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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 124 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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. net — after costs
  6. row — to paddle
  7. net — for catching
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. kick — in football
  10. net — in sport
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. key — the most important part
  15. row — a line
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. tube — the underground
  21. date — the fruit
  22. key — in music
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. wave — of the sea

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