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

Word bank: sharp · trunk · rest · hand · cue · spring

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. sharp — clever
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a hint
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. rest — a break
  8. cue — a signal
  9. rest — what's left
  10. hand — help
  11. spring — a coil
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. spring — of water
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. rest — what's left
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. spring — the season

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