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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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 a car
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. staff — employees
  5. pitch — completely
  6. spring — a coil
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. spring — the season
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. file — a document
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. spring — of water
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. staff — employees
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. file — a line of people
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. file — a tool
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. staff — a stick
  24. stem — to come from

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