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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. game — a match
  3. rash — hasty
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. game — wild animals
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. kick — in football
  8. mark — a grade
  9. last — to go on
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. ball — a dance
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. ball — a great time
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. wax — to grow
  17. last — final
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. mark — a trace
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. rash — a series
  22. last — finally
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. wax — for sculpting

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