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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 116 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. court — of a king
  6. file — a line of people
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — for sport
  9. cap — a lid
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. net — for catching
  13. cap — of ice
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. cap — a hat
  16. court — of law
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. file — a document
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. file — a tool
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. tube — a container

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