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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. land — ground
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. land — to come down
  10. kick — in football
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. land — a country
  13. tube — a container
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. tube — the underground
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. pound — a weight
  22. perch — the fish
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. trunk — of a tree

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