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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 120 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: bat · trunk · wave · content · mouse · foot · wound · club

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. club — for golf
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. club — for dancing
  15. content — the amount
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. foot — a measure
  19. club — a group
  20. content — happy
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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