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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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 signal
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. cue — for pool
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. race — the arms race
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. race — a contest
  11. hand — help
  12. squash — the sport
  13. branch — a division
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. hand — in cards
  16. squash — to crush
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. cue — a hint
  20. race — humankind
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. rush — hurry
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. rush — a thrill

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