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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: patient · perch · file · roll · kid · bay · trunk · lean

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. kid — child
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. file — a line of people
  8. lean — thin
  9. roll — a list
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. file — a tool
  13. kid — to tease
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. lean — to bend
  21. file — a document
  22. perch — the fish
  23. roll — a cake
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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