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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. season — of the year
  3. court — of a king
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. present — a gift
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. present — there
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. court — for sport
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. season — in sport
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. rash — a series
  18. present — the time now
  19. wound — an injury
  20. court — of law
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rash — hasty
  24. calf — a young animal

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