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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. kick — in football
  4. court — of law
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. pass — a permit
  7. fall — to drop
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. band — a ring
  14. fall — the season
  15. scale — in music
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. court — of a king
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. stock — goods
  20. scale — size or range
  21. stock — shares
  22. fall — to drop
  23. court — for sport
  24. band — a music group

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