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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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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: court · drill · lash · bay · kid · trunk · mouse · wound

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. drill — a practice
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. wound — an injury
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. court — of law
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. court — for sport
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. court — of a king
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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