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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. root — the cause
  3. root — of a word
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. court — of a king
  8. root — of a plant
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. mine — for digging
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. kid — child
  20. court — of law
  21. court — for sport
  22. bore — to drill
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. mine — an explosive

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