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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. cap — a lid
  4. court — of law
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. staff — employees
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. cap — of ice
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. kid — child
  12. key — for a lock
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. staff — a stick
  15. court — of a king
  16. key — the most important part
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — the underground
  19. key — in music
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cap — a hat
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. staff — employees
  24. court — for sport

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