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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. court — of a king
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. cold — an illness
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. cold — not warm
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. court — for sport
  15. cap — of ice
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wax — to grow
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cap — a lid
  21. court — of law
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. cap — a hat
  24. 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