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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cell — in biology
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. spell — magic
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. spell — letters
  11. present — a gift
  12. kick — in football
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. present — there
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. present — the time now
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spell — a short time
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wake — a trail
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. cell — a phone

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