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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. suit — to fit
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. suit — in cards
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. field — for sport
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. field — a subject
  13. clip — to cut
  14. field — farmland
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. clip — for paper
  17. suit — clothes
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. clip — a video
  21. last — final
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — in football
  24. patient — a sick person

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