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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · tube · kick · ball · pit · trunk · fork · clip

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. tube — a container
  4. fork — in a road
  5. clip — to cut
  6. pit — in a race
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. ball — a great time
  13. clip — for paper
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. clip — a video
  16. ball — a dance
  17. tube — the underground
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — a hole
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. fork — to eat with

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