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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. band — a ring
  4. bear — the animal
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — to wash
  7. key — in music
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rush — hurry
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. key — the most important part
  18. band — a music group
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bear — the animal
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. chest — of your body
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bear — to put up with

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