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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 124 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. cue — a hint
  3. rest — what's left
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. band — a ring
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. stand — to bear
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cue — for pool
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. band — a music group
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. cue — a signal
  20. rest — a break
  21. tube — the underground
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. tube — a container
  24. scale — size or range

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