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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. spring — of water
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. ball — a dance
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. land — to come down
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. spring — a coil
  11. land — a country
  12. spring — the season
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. land — ground
  15. ball — a great time
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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