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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. track — a path
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. rest — a break
  6. court — for sport
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. rest — what's left
  9. capital — a city
  10. track — a song
  11. cold — an illness
  12. capital — money
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. mate — to breed
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bear — the animal
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — of law
  21. bear — the animal
  22. rest — what's left
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. mate — a partner

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