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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 120 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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. clip — for paper
  4. prune — to trim
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bore — to tire
  7. track — a song
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. court — for sport
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. clip — a video
  12. court — of law
  13. track — to keep track
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. prune — to trim
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. court — of a king
  22. bore — to drill
  23. track — a path
  24. prune — the fruit

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