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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: present · cap · mark · rock · clip · wound · trunk · drill

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. cap — of ice
  4. present — the time now
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — a lid
  9. clip — for paper
  10. drill — a practice
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. drill — the tool
  13. present — there
  14. mark — a grade
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. wound — an injury
  17. rock — a stone
  18. clip — a video
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mark — a trace
  21. rock — music
  22. wound — an injury
  23. clip — to cut
  24. drill — army training

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