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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. mug — a cup
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ground — a position
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — in sport
  12. club — a group
  13. root — of a plant
  14. club — for dancing
  15. root — of a word
  16. mug — a face
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bear — the animal
  19. mug — to rob
  20. root — the cause
  21. season — of the year
  22. club — for golf
  23. sharp — clever
  24. ground — the earth

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