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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. kid — child
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. court — for sport
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. stand — to bear
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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