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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. field — for sport
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. content — the amount
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. mate — a friend
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. field — a subject
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. tube — the underground
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. mate — a partner
  18. tube — a container
  19. field — farmland
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. kick — in football
  24. mate — to breed

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