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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: key · trunk · craft · chest · clip · chair · mine · track

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. track — to keep track
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. key — the most important part
  7. chest — a box
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. chest — of your body
  12. key — in music
  13. track — a song
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. key — for a lock
  17. craft — boats
  18. track — a path
  19. mine — for digging
  20. chest — of your body
  21. craft — a skill
  22. clip — a video
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. chair — a leader

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