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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 giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mine — for digging
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. hand — help
  6. spring — of water
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. hand — in cards
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. spring — the season
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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