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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cell — in biology
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. plane — a tool
  12. hand — help
  13. kid — child
  14. wound — an injury
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. cell — a phone
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kid — to tease
  24. calf — of the leg

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