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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. last — to go on
  5. scale — in music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. wake — a trail
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bore — to drill
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. bore — to tire
  13. hand — help
  14. scale — size or range
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — music
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. last — finally
  22. last — final
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. trunk — of a car

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