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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 116 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 · pit · ball · kid · mouse · cell · land · saw

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. kid — to tease
  3. ball — a great time
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. land — ground
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. cell — in biology
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. land — to come down
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. kid — child
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. cell — a phone
  16. land — a country
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pit — a hole
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. saw — the tool
  24. trunk — of a tree

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