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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 120 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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. fall — to drop
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. land — a country
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. sharp — clever
  11. land — to come down
  12. spell — a short time
  13. fall — to drop
  14. wound — an injury
  15. fall — the season
  16. spell — magic
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. spell — letters
  20. wound — an injury
  21. land — ground
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — completely
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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