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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. bat — the animal
  3. court — of a king
  4. tube — the underground
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — a container
  8. court — for sport
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — a friend
  14. court — of law
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. mate — to breed
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. wake — a trail
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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