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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. land — ground
  3. court — of law
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. court — of a king
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. land — a country
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. court — for sport
  16. snap — to click
  17. tear — to rip
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. tear — from crying
  20. land — to come down
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. plane — 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