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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. game — a match
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. cell — in biology
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cell — a phone
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. game — wild animals
  22. tube — a container
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. wound — an injury

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