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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. ball — a great time
  3. cell — in biology
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. squash — to crush
  8. game — wild animals
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. game — a match
  11. ball — a dance
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. board — to get on
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cell — a phone
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. squash — the sport
  24. ball — a round shape

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