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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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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: clip · bat · present · nail · key · trunk · mate · kid

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mate — a friend
  6. clip — a video
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. present — there
  11. present — the time now
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. present — a gift
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. key — in music
  17. key — the most important part
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bat — the animal
  20. key — for a lock
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. kid — to tease
  24. trunk — of a car

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