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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: trunk · row · arm · fork · cell · race

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. race — a contest
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. row — a line
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. row — to paddle
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. race — humankind
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. arm — part of the body

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