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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. key — the most important part
  5. last — finally
  6. key — in music
  7. game — a match
  8. last — final
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. last — to go on
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. game — wild animals
  18. shower — to wash
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. fork — in a road
  21. shower — rain
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. key — for a lock

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