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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: leaves · trunk · ground · chest · date · row · cabinet · bat

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a line
  5. chest — of your body
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bat — the animal
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. chest — a box
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. chest — of your body
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ground — crushed
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bat — for 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