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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. land — ground
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. land — to come down
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. bass — low music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. land — a country
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. pass — a permit
  15. row — a line
  16. rash — a series
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bass — the fish
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. tear — from crying
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fine — all right
  24. rash — hasty

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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