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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. tear — to rip
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. land — to come down
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. court — of law
  9. tear — from crying
  10. land — a country
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. game — a match
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. tear — from crying
  17. land — ground
  18. court — for sport
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. cell — a phone
  22. foot — a measure
  23. game — wild animals
  24. court — of a king

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