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

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rule — a law
  4. kick — in football
  5. tear — to rip
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rule — government
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — a phone
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. tear — from crying

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