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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 120 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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. rock — a stone
  3. season — of the year
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. bore — to drill
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. race — a contest
  8. field — for sport
  9. mine — for digging
  10. face — part of the head
  11. bore — to tire
  12. rock — music
  13. season — in sport
  14. face — to confront
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. field — a subject
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. race — the arms race
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. field — farmland
  23. face — to point toward
  24. race — humankind

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