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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 116 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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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: race · lie · mug · racket · trunk · hand · rash · cell

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. rash — a series
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cell — a phone
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. mug — a face
  8. hand — help
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mug — to rob
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. rash — hasty
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. race — the arms race
  23. lie — to recline
  24. cell — in biology

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