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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. date — the fruit
  5. club — a group
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. file — a tool
  8. tube — the underground
  9. pitch — completely
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. tube — a container
  20. club — for golf
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. pitch — a sports field

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