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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: trunk · bat · object · mark · kid · bulb · snap · net

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. kid — to tease
  3. mark — a grade
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. net — in sport
  10. mark — a trace
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — an aim
  17. bulb — for light
  18. net — after costs
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. object — to protest
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bulb — for light
  23. kid — child
  24. trunk — of a tree

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