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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. drill — the tool
  3. roll — a cake
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. drill — a practice
  6. track — to keep track
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. current — electric
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chest — of your body
  11. roll — a list
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. chest — a box
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cell — in biology
  19. chest — of your body
  20. drill — army training
  21. current — happening now
  22. track — a song
  23. track — a path
  24. current — of water

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