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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. field — farmland
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. file — a tool
  10. bank — for money
  11. tube — a container
  12. field — for sport
  13. file — a line of people
  14. net — after costs
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. file — a document
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. net — for catching
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. field — a subject
  24. calf — a young animal

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