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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. sharp — clever
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. rest — what's left
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. cell — a phone
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. cell — in biology
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. perch — the fish
  19. rest — a break
  20. swing — to play on
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. rest — what's left
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. kick — a thrill

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