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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bat — the animal
  6. squash — the sport
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. content — the amount
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. content — happy
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. hand — in cards
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bear — the animal
  23. squash — to crush
  24. hand — help

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