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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. capital — money
  3. branch — a division
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cold — not warm
  7. capital — a city
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. snap — to click
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. lie — to recline
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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