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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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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: march · arm · cold · mate · wound · trunk · cue · lie

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. cue — for pool
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a friend
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wound — an injury
  12. march — music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. march — the month
  15. mate — a partner
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. march — the month
  22. cold — not warm
  23. arm — part of the body
  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