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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: pit · wound · trunk · board · fork · bat · kick · swing

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. pit — in a race
  8. fork — in a road
  9. wound — an injury
  10. swing — music
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. board — to get on
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. board — a committee
  19. kick — in football
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — the animal

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