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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chair — a leader
  4. court — of a king
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. drill — a practice
  8. chest — a box
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a line
  12. chest — of your body
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. drill — the tool
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. drill — army training
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. stem — to come from
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. court — of law
  23. court — for sport
  24. chair — to sit on

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