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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. ball — a great time
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. row — to paddle
  6. ball — a dance
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. game — a match
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. kick — in football
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bat — the animal
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. fork — in a road
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. row — a line
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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