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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. sharp — clever
  6. last — finally
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. face — to confront
  9. pop — to visit
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. last — to go on
  13. face — part of the head
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pop — soda
  18. wind — moving air
  19. pop — music
  20. wind — moving air
  21. last — final
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. face — to point toward

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