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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. stand — to bear
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a friend
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. root — the cause
  15. root — of a plant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mate — a partner
  22. root — of a word
  23. bear — the animal
  24. hide — to keep secret

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