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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pop — music
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. fall — the season
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. pop — soda
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. pop — to visit
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. rash — a series
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bat — the animal
  21. branch — a division
  22. fall — to drop
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. ruler — for measuring

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