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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. chip — to eat
  6. land — a country
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. land — ground
  12. vault — a safe
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. chip — for betting
  15. cold — an illness
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. march — music
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. land — to come down
  21. cold — not warm
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. chip — in a computer

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