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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bat — the animal
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. court — of law
  7. face — part of the head
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. court — of a king
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. face — to confront
  14. kick — in football
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. court — for sport
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. mine — for digging
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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