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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. cell — a phone
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. drill — army training
  6. capital — a city
  7. cell — in biology
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. wake — a trail
  12. dip — to sink
  13. hand — help
  14. drill — a practice
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. hand — in cards
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. drill — the tool
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. capital — money
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. hand — part of the body

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