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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 124 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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. cell — a phone
  6. kick — in football
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. saw — the tool
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. saw — the tool
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. court — of law
  14. pound — a weight
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. cell — in biology
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. court — of a king
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. safe — out of danger

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