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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 120 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: fall · trunk · ball · sharp · prune · content · hand · key

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. ball — a dance
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. hand — in cards
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. key — for a lock
  10. key — in music
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. ball — a great time
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. sharp — clever
  17. key — the most important part
  18. prune — to trim
  19. content — happy
  20. hand — help
  21. content — the amount
  22. fall — the season
  23. prune — to trim
  24. ball — a round shape

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