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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: bat · club · perch · snap · pit · pitcher · trunk · hide

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. club — a group
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. pit — in a race
  21. snap — to click
  22. pit — a hole
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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