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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 116 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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. bank — for money
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. spring — a coil
  7. race — humankind
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bank — for money
  10. fall — the season
  11. court — of a king
  12. fall — to drop
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — the season
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. rash — a series
  17. race — a contest
  18. bank — of a river
  19. court — of law
  20. rash — hasty
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. race — the arms race
  24. court — for sport

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