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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 had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. perch — the fish
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. plane — a tool
  6. file — a document
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. file — a line of people
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. degree — from a university
  13. last — finally
  14. degree — temperature
  15. last — final
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. degree — an amount
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. last — to go on
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. band — a music group
  23. file — a tool
  24. band — a ring

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