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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chest · mouse · dip · trunk · cabinet · bat · land · bark

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. chest — of your body
  9. land — ground
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bark — to shout
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bat — the animal
  20. land — a country
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. land — to come down

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