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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. kick — in football
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. current — of water
  11. spell — letters
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. fork — in a road
  18. current — electric
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. spell — magic
  22. current — happening now
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. fork — a garden tool

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