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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: calf · scale · kid · cell · bound · trunk · press · ball

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. ball — a dance
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. bound — certain
  6. press — to push
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. scale — size or range
  9. cell — a phone
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. ball — a great time
  12. scale — in music
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bound — obliged
  18. press — a publisher
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bound — tied together
  21. press — newspapers
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. cell — in biology
  24. kid — to tease

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