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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. rock — a stone
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. kick — in football
  9. kid — child
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. tube — the underground
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. rock — music
  18. kid — to tease
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bark — to shout
  24. tube — a container

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