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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: bass · trunk · spring · present · cell · arm · clip · racket

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. spring — of water
  3. clip — for paper
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. spring — a coil
  6. present — a gift
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. spring — the season
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. present — there
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. clip — to cut
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. clip — a video
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cell — in biology
  19. bass — low music
  20. cell — a phone
  21. present — the time now
  22. bass — the fish
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bass — the instrument

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