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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. chest — of your body
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. clip — a video
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wound — an injury
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. season — in sport
  24. chest — a box

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