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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. lean — to bend
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. pound — a weight
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. march — the month
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. branch — a division
  13. march — the month
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. march — music
  20. ball — a dance
  21. lean — thin
  22. plane — a tool
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. trunk — of a tree

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