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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. spell — a short time
  4. branch — a division
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. court — of law
  11. court — of a king
  12. spell — letters
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. tear — from crying
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. shower — to wash
  18. tear — from crying
  19. spell — magic
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. court — for sport
  22. shower — rain
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to sink

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