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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wax — to grow
  4. game — a match
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bear — the animal
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. race — the arms race
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. bear — the animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. kick — in football
  20. race — a contest
  21. content — happy
  22. game — wild animals
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. race — humankind

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