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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. bass — the fish
  3. track — to keep track
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. bore — to tire
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. game — a match
  9. game — wild animals
  10. club — a group
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. track — a path
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. bore — to drill
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. club — for dancing
  20. track — a song
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. club — for golf

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