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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. spell — a short time
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. shower — rain
  5. branch — a division
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. mark — a trace
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. season — in sport
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. season — of the year
  14. plane — a tool
  15. spell — magic
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. shower — to wash
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. spell — letters
  21. deal — to handle
  22. mark — a grade
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. deal — an agreement

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