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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. craft — boats
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. rash — hasty
  11. snap — to click
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. bat — the animal
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — to protest
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rash — a series
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. craft — a skill

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