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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. clip — for paper
  5. roll — a list
  6. mine — for digging
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. roll — a cake
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — to cut
  17. ground — a position
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bay — a horse colour

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