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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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Word bank
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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: pitcher · bowl · clip · trunk · nail · kid

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. clip — a video
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. clip — for paper
  17. kid — child
  18. nail — for a hammer

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