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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 did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. bound — tied together
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wind — moving air
  8. row — a line
  9. bound — obliged
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. fall — the season
  15. bound — certain
  16. mine — for digging
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. fall — to drop
  20. row — to paddle
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — army training
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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