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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
468
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: hand · straw · file · trunk · bowl · pass · march · lie

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pass — a permit
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — help
  12. file — a tool
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. lie — to recline
  16. file — a line of people
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. file — a document
  24. march — music

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