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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: trunk · bass · tube · craft · clip · bound · drill · key

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. bound — obliged
  8. key — the most important part
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bound — tied together
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. drill — a practice
  20. bass — low music
  21. bound — certain
  22. craft — boats
  23. clip — to cut
  24. key — in music

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