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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 120 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 broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. drill — army training
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. bulb — for light
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. rule — government
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wound — an injury
  15. file — a line of people
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. file — a document
  19. rule — a law
  20. drill — a practice
  21. wound — an injury
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. file — a tool

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