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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. pit — a hole
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. row — a line
  10. mine — for digging
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — child
  14. cue — a hint
  15. kid — to tease
  16. row — to paddle
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cue — for pool
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. pit — in a race
  22. cue — a signal
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mouse — the animal

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