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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. spring — the season
  3. chest — of your body
  4. staff — employees
  5. court — of law
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. spring — a coil
  8. vault — a safe
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. bear — the animal
  11. court — for sport
  12. bear — the animal
  13. chest — of your body
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. staff — employees
  16. spring — of water
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. kick — in football
  21. chest — a box
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. court — of a king
  24. trunk — of a tree

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