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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. charge — a price
  6. cold — not warm
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bark — to shout
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. pound — a weight
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. charge — electricity
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. charge — in control
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. tube — a container
  24. nail — for a hammer

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