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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. face — part of the head
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. court — of a king
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. mine — for digging
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. court — for sport
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. lie — to recline
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — to confront
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. court — of law
  24. nail — for a hammer

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