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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: deal · mate · bowl · clip · leaves · roll · trunk · kid

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. mate — to breed
  7. roll — a cake
  8. clip — to cut
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. clip — a video
  11. roll — a list
  12. kid — child
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. mate — a friend
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. clip — for paper
  23. mate — a partner
  24. kid — to tease

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