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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. spring — a coil
  4. lean — to bend
  5. spring — of water
  6. squash — the sport
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. squash — to crush
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. date — the fruit
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. lean — thin
  21. branch — a division
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. spring — the season
  24. wave — of the sea

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