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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. file — a line of people
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mate — a friend
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wound — an injury
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. hand — help
  17. file — a document
  18. mate — a partner
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. mate — to breed
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. file — a tool
  24. craft — boats

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