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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. hand — help
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. cell — in biology
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pit — in a race
  11. hand — in cards
  12. chest — a box
  13. cell — a phone
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bank — of a river
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. bank — for money
  22. track — a path
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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