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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 116 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. tear — from crying
  3. spell — letters
  4. chip — for betting
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bass — the fish
  8. chair — a leader
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. chip — to eat
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. tear — to rip
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. spell — magic
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. ball — a great time
  20. ball — a dance
  21. bat — the animal
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bass — low music
  24. ball — a round shape

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