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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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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: hide · straw · saw · bound · march · trunk · cell · deal

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. bound — obliged
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. march — the month
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. march — music
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. bound — tied together
  12. cell — a phone
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. march — the month
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cell — in biology
  21. saw — the tool
  22. deal — to handle
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bound — certain

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