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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. row — to paddle
  5. fall — to drop
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bulb — for light
  14. dip — to sink
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bulb — for light
  18. kid — child
  19. fall — the season
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. fall — to drop
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. chip — for betting
  24. chip — in a computer

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