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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bat — the animal
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. court — for sport
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. ground — a position
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. race — a contest
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. ground — crushed
  14. lie — to recline
  15. branch — a division
  16. race — the arms race
  17. court — of a king
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. race — humankind
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. court — of law
  23. ground — the earth
  24. bat — for baseball

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