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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.

Make a worksheet

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: bat · trunk · lash · bore · chest · game · land · capital

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. bore — to drill
  6. chest — a box
  7. game — a match
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. game — wild animals
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. land — ground
  12. chest — of your body
  13. capital — money
  14. land — to come down
  15. capital — a city
  16. bat — the animal
  17. land — a country
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bore — to tire
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. capital — a big letter

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