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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: date · cabinet · press · pit · fall · chest · trunk · bat

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. press — a publisher
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pit — in a race
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chest — a box
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. date — the fruit
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fall — to drop
  20. pit — a hole
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — the animal

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