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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. ground — crushed
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bore — to drill
  5. ground — the earth
  6. prune — to trim
  7. face — to point toward
  8. clip — a video
  9. toast — bread
  10. bark — to shout
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. ground — a position
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. clip — for paper
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. face — to confront
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bore — to tire
  24. prune — to trim

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