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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. net — in sport
  7. net — after costs
  8. foot — a measure
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. tear — to rip
  11. chair — a leader
  12. club — for golf
  13. rock — music
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. wake — a trail
  16. club — a group
  17. rock — a stone
  18. club — for dancing
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — for catching

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