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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. kick — in football
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. mate — to breed
  7. drill — the tool
  8. key — the most important part
  9. capital — money
  10. mate — a partner
  11. key — in music
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. mate — a friend
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. capital — a city
  18. drill — army training
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. drill — a practice
  21. mine — for digging
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. key — for a lock
  24. mine — belonging to me

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