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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. net — for catching
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. net — in sport
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. cue — for pool
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. craft — a skill
  13. cue — a signal
  14. cold — not warm
  15. craft — boats
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — hurry
  19. net — after costs
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. cold — an illness

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