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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 116 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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. band — a ring
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — a division
  5. court — for sport
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mate — a partner
  11. can — a tin
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. can — a tin
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a music group
  16. cell — a phone
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mate — to breed
  19. saw — the tool
  20. court — of a king
  21. can — to be able to
  22. cell — in biology
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. court — of law

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