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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bore — to tire
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. capital — a city
  11. bore — to drill
  12. kick — in football
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — in a race
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bat — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. fork — in a road
  24. capital — a big letter

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