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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. can — a tin
  3. hand — help
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. pit — in a race
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. snap — to click
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. cold — an illness
  13. can — a tin
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. cold — not warm
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. can — to be able to
  23. hand — in cards
  24. pit — a hole

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