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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: deal · mine · bat · nail · toast · pitcher · row · trunk

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. toast — bread
  7. mine — for digging
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. row — a line
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. deal — to handle
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. row — to paddle
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. mine — belonging to me

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