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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're on a ________________ here.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. mine — for digging
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — of your body
  8. lean — to bend
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. lean — thin
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rock — music
  14. kick — in football
  15. mate — a partner
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. roll — a list
  21. chest — a box
  22. mate — to breed
  23. roll — a cake
  24. rock — a stone

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