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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. board — a committee
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. board — to get on
  10. shower — to wash
  11. row — a line
  12. roll — a cake
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — a permit
  20. row — to paddle
  21. shower — rain
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. branch — a division
  24. roll — a list

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