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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. scale — size or range
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. present — there
  8. game — wild animals
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. key — for a lock
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. present — a gift
  18. bat — the animal
  19. present — the time now
  20. key — the most important part
  21. scale — in music
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. key — in music
  24. bat — for baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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